Aqib Javed says Babar Azam is technically a better batsman than Virat Kohli.
Former Pakistan cricketer Aaqib Javed has made a bizarre comment on a comparison between India captain Virat Kohli and Pakistan's Babar Azam. He said Babar has no weakness unlike Kohli and the latter can improve his technique by looking at the Pakistani batsman.
The 26-year-old has played 31 Tests and 80 ODIs for Pakistan after making his international debut in 2015. He has scored 2167 runs in Tests and 3808 runs in ODIs, with an average of 44.22 and 56.84, respectively.
Meanwhile, Kohli is called the 'run machine' and currently the best batsman of this era. There's a reason why he's rated on top among his competitors. But Javed seemed to have not impressed with the Indian skipper's batting technique against swing bowling.
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"Virat Kohli has a better range [of shots] as compared to Babar Azam but he also has one area of weakness. If the ball swings, he tends to get trapped around the off-stump such as against [James] Anderson in England,” Javed told Cricket Pakistan in an interview.
"When you look at Babar, you don’t see any weak areas. Just like, [Sachin] Tendulkar who also didn’t have any weak areas. Babar is technically more safe and sound but if he follows Kohli’s fitness routine he will become an even better player. Meanwhile, Kohli can improve his technique by looking at Babar so that he doesn’t get trapped."
Babar is the best batter in Pakistan cricket right now and Javed said he wasn't expecting him to be so consistent in the last few years. "During the past two or three years, Babar Azam is 50 percent of Pakistan’s batting. I never thought that he would be this consistent and even go past Virat Kohli [in ODI rankings].
Pakistan is very lucky; he came when the team was struggling and has single-handedly put the team on the right track. Even, captaincy hasn’t affected his form," he explained.