Babar Azam and Steve Smith in BBL - (Source: ScreenGrab/X.com)
On Friday, Sydney Thunder locked horns against Sydney Sixers in BBL 2025-26. The fans turned up in thousands to witness the Sydney Derby. Further, it was a special occasion because several first-team stars returned after national duty.
The ongoing match marked the return of Mitchell Starc. Further, Steve Smith also featured in his second BBL match of the season. The Sixers are filled with star power because they have Smith, Starc, and Babar Azam in the playing XI.
Babar Azam and Steve Smith's moment goes viral in BBL
Meanwhile, Babar Azam and Steve Smith stole the limelight in the first innings when they were involved in a funny moment while stopping a boundary. Notably, the Sixers won the toss and opted to field first. On the fourth ball of the 16th over, Maddinson played a shot down the ground, which was chased by Babar Azam and Steve Smith.
Notably, the two players ran from opposite ends, and Smith expected Babar to put in a dive. However, the Pakistan star just ran across the ball and didn’t put in a dive. The Australian counterpart was shocked to see the lack of effort there. Smith also raised his hands in the air, gesturing that he couldn’t believe what he saw.
Further, on the very next ball, the ball again travelled down the ground where Steve Smith stopped the ball and was about to throw when Babar came in his way. Notably, there could have been a bad accident, but it was avoided on time.
Babar Azam and Steve Smith off to a blistering start
The duo which was heavily criticised before the start of the match because of strike-rate concerns. However, Babar Azam and Steve Smith slammed a fifty-run stand for the opening wicket. Notably, at the time of writing this article, Sixers are 104/0 after 8.5 overs.
Steve Smith slammed a quickfire fifty and is batting on 55 (25). Meanwhile, Babar Azam has also match the pace and is batting on 41 (31). Sixers need just 86 runs to win in 63 balls.
Babar Azam struggling in BBL 15
Besides this game, the tournament has not been fruitful for Babar Azam. The 31-year-old has scored 201 runs in nine games, averaging 33.50. The right-handed batter has been heavily criticised for his slow batting and a strike-rate of 108.06.
Babar has scored two fifty-plus scores and was about to score the third but got dismissed for 47 (39) in the ongoing Sydney Derby. Steve Smith, on the other hand, is breathing fire and has scored 88 (35). Further, the Australia legend is on course to bring up the fastest century in the history of BBL, which is of 39 balls.
However, Sixer's season has been an average one as they are placed fifth on the table with nine points in eight games. The Men in Pink are still in contention to qualify for the next round.
