'When Babar Azam Ends His career, He Will be...': Gautam Gambhir Makes 'BOLD' Statement
Babar Azam stepped down as Pakistan's all-format skipper post World Cup 2023 [X.com]
After a disastrous ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, Pakistan's Babar Azam stepped down as the national side's all-format captain, handing over Test reins to Shan Masood and T20I leadership to Shaheen Shah Afridi.
Azam, who is regarded as one of the best batters in the present generation, had a subpar World Cup, where the prolific scorer managed just 320 runs in nine outings, with Pakistan failing to qualify for knockouts.
Regardless, former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir has opined that giving up captaincy will bring out the best of Azam, relieving him of the team's responsibilities.
Speaking to Sportskeeda, the former two-time IPL-winning captain further predicted that Azam could end up as Pakistan's greatest batter by the time the 29-year-old decides to hang up his boots.
Here's what Gambhir said
"Babar Azam is still a top quality batter for me. We might get to see the best of Babar Azam now. In Pakistan, all the blame as well as the appreciation only goes to the captain. It happens to an extent in India as well, but not to the level that it happens in Pakistan."
"There were never question marks over Babar Azam’s batting. The question marks were over his captaincy. Now that he has left it, you will see Babar reaching a different level as a batter. Even today, he is one of Pakistan’s top batters. When Babar Azam ends his career, he will be Pakistan’s greatest batter. He is still young and can play for another 10 years as a batter. He himself might not know what he can achieve."
Currently in Australia, Azam is touring the nation for a three-Test tour with Pakistan, where the first match is underway in Perth.
Overall, in 271 internationals for Pakistan between 2015 and 2023, Azam has amassed 12,986 runs across formats with 31 centuries and 88 half-centuries under his belt.
 "Vishal Mehra")
