"Someday, I am looking at a triple century" : Babar Azam

[Abdullah719]

Babar Azam speaking after the first Test against SL:

"Early on, I struggled a bit because the ball was coming slowly. Abid spoke to me and said to wait a bit and play the ball. I was trying to play to my strengths. They had packed one side so I played a lot to the offside"

"My ODI form was going well so I tried to transition that to Tests. I had to have belief in myself as I wasn't performing in Tests as in ODIs/T20Is. I changed my mindset a bit"

"I was worried that the sun might go down quickly so I tried to make runs quickly towards the end"

"I have worked hard on my fitness, I have worked on my skills as well. I do extra practice besides my usual practice for power hitting. Once I got confidence, I started playing the same way in matches. In the match, you go along with what you need in the situation, where you need to hit and where you need to go slow"

"Abid bhai played an outstanding innings. We call him legend in the dressing room, that's his name. He showed his experience in this match, he focused well during his innings. He told me to have belief in myself"

"It was very enjoyable to play in front of a home crowd. When your own people support you and the stadium is full and they take your name, that gives you confidence and cheers you up. Everyone knew it would be a drawn match but the crowd came and it was a houseful, it's enjoyable to play when people are cheering for you"

"When you go to a country like Australia and score against their strong bowling attack, it gives you an idea about how to bat. How you need to assess conditions, analyse bowlers and plan the innings. The more you stay in the ground, the more confidence you get"

"My goals like in ODIs and T20Is are to keep improving and do whatever I can for the team and do well individually also"

"I think I am fine at #4. I am not concerned about numbers, it's according to the team requirement. At the beginning, I played at #3 and 6 also"

"I've changed my mindset a bit, I used to think negatively before. I have increased my hard work. With temperament, the point is just to play session by session. The longer you spend at the crease, the better idea you get about the wicket, bowlers, shot selection etc."

[SensiblePakFan]

Hard work is the reason he produces results.

[Abdullah]

Always felt he was mentally weak at the start. Hopefully big runs in the next 3 tests and then no looking back and he is totally over that issue

[MenInG]

KARACHI: Prolific Pakistan batsman Babar Azam wants to achieve the "legend" status that Virat Kohli has acquired but concedes that despite the oft-repeated comparisons, he is still some time away from getting anywhere close to the Indian captain.

The 24-year-old is a self-confessed fan of Kohli spoke about his aspiration to emulate the World's No.1 Test and ODI batsman in an interview.

"Look he (Kohli) has already achieved a lot. He is a legend in his country. Honestly there is no comparison with me right now but eventually I also want to get where he is today," Azam said.

"The media and people have drawn comparisons between me and Virat Kohli but I realise that I still need to get more runs in red ball cricket to be ranked among the top players. That is why in recent months I have been focusing a lot on getting consistent scores in Test matches," he added.

Babar, who scored his second Test hundred in the last three games on Sunday against Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi, said he wanted to be a batsman who, like Kohli, could win more matches for his team.

"I don't feel any pressure if anyone compares me with Kohli or (Steve) Smith. I am now more focused on my batting and I spend hours watching videos of my innings. I catch my mistakes and then I try to ensure I don't commit them again the next time," he said.

Babar, who came of age in Australia with a Test hundred at Brisbane and 97 in the day-night Test at Adelaide, said the traditional format remains the most difficult.

"When I got out cheaply to a bad shot in the first innings at Brisbane, I was very cross with myself because I realised no top batman should get out like that. In the following innings I made it a point to be patient and build my innings although playing strokes comes naturally to me," he explained.

"Someday I am looking at a triple century. You need to set yourself goals as all top players do. I have set myself the target of becoming consistent in Test cricket as well."

Babar said returning to play Test cricket in Pakistan was an ambition fulfilled for him.

"We have played T20 and ODI matches in Pakistan but playing a Test is a totally different experience. Scoring a century in front of my home crowd was the icing on the cake for me," he said.

The 25-year old, who has a batting average of 50 in T20 internationals and 54 in ODIs, has improved his batting average to 39 in Tests.
"...I was not sure about myself. But things improved with time. Now I am relishing the challenge of playing red ball cricket. I have learnt the virtues of patience. White ball cricket, I think, comes more naturally for me," he stated.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...w/72762526.cms

[angrypathan]

Triple century would be nice

[topspin]

KARACHI: Prolific Pakistan batsman Babar Azam wants to achieve the "legend" status that Virat Kohli has acquired but concedes that despite the oft-repeated comparisons, he is still some time away from getting anywhere close to the Indian captain.

The 24-year-old is a self-confessed fan of Kohli spoke about his aspiration to emulate the World's No.1 Test and ODI batsman in an interview.

"Look he (Kohli) has already achieved a lot. He is a legend in his country. Honestly there is no comparison with me right now but eventually I also want to get where he is today," Azam said.

"The media and people have drawn comparisons between me and Virat Kohli but I realise that I still need to get more runs in red ball cricket to be ranked among the top players. That is why in recent months I have been focusing a lot on getting consistent scores in Test matches," he added.

Babar, who scored his second Test hundred in the last three games on Sunday against Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi, said he wanted to be a batsman who, like Kohli, could win more matches for his team.

"I don't feel any pressure if anyone compares me with Kohli or (Steve) Smith. I am now more focused on my batting and I spend hours watching videos of my innings. I catch my mistakes and then I try to ensure I don't commit them again the next time," he said.

Babar, who came of age in Australia with a Test hundred at Brisbane and 97 in the day-night Test at Adelaide, said the traditional format remains the most difficult.

"When I got out cheaply to a bad shot in the first innings at Brisbane, I was very cross with myself because I realised no top batman should get out like that. In the following innings I made it a point to be patient and build my innings although playing strokes comes naturally to me," he explained.

"Someday I am looking at a triple century. You need to set yourself goals as all top players do. I have set myself the target of becoming consistent in Test cricket as well."

Babar said returning to play Test cricket in Pakistan was an ambition fulfilled for him.

"We have played T20 and ODI matches in Pakistan but playing a Test is a totally different experience. Scoring a century in front of my home crowd was the icing on the cake for me," he said.

The 25-year old, who has a batting average of 50 in T20 internationals and 54 in ODIs, has improved his batting average to 39 in Tests.
"...I was not sure about myself. But things improved with time. Now I am relishing the challenge of playing red ball cricket. I have learnt the virtues of patience. White ball cricket, I think, comes more naturally for me," he stated.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...w/72762526.cms

It's great to see Babar utilise the video footage of himself batting, as extensively as he does. It shows to me how driven he is to succeed. Perhaps there's no better way to iron out technical flaws that could appear in his game.

Following this approach shows to me he is utilising an analytical mindset, which could prove to be an asset as a prospective captain of the side in all three formats.

Not only is well ahead of his colleagues (in the batting order) when it comes to technique and ability, but I can be sure that he is second to none when it comes to work ethic.

Other than perhaps Shan Masood, I highly doubt there are many other batsmen in the Pakistan team who are as dedicated as Babar is in self-reflection.

[Hyperion66]

He is a doer, not a talker. Great trait.

[Captain caveman]

So much hype for a guy who.has done very little, not prouced a single match winning test innings against a top team away from home.

Sa vs Pak 3 - 0
Australia vs Pak 3 - 0

Talk when you have achieved somehing of note, Bobby!

[MenInG]

So much hype for a guy who.has done very little, not prouced a single match winning test innings against a top team away from home.

Sa vs Pak 3 - 0
Australia vs Pak 3 - 0

Talk when you have achieved somehing of note, Bobby!

He isnt the one talking. Its our journalists trying to get him to say stuff they can put on headlines.

[Vastunna]

So much hype for a guy who.has done very little, not prouced a single match winning test innings against a top team away from home.

Sa vs Pak 3 - 0
Australia vs Pak 3 - 0

Talk when you have achieved somehing of note, Bobby!

He is playing with a team of 9 or 10 journeymen. You can not expect one man to win you test matches with the bat. With the ball, maybe yes. Not with the bat. One man can not pull off a test match with the bat.

[Captain caveman]

He is playing with a team of 9 or 10 journeymen. You can not expect one man to win you test matches with the bat. With the ball, maybe yes. Not with the bat. One man can not pull off a test match with the bat.

Youis khan was doing it just afew years ago with a similar batting line up( i dont rate misbah, before you say he was there too)

Babar only cares about scoring his century and not about winning the game for the team.

At the moment, i rate him as a very poor mans M. Yousuf, who was also a very selfish player, but not everyone can be a javed miandad or younis khan, our greatest equal test bats.

[Vastunna]

Youis khan was doing it just afew years ago with a similar batting line up( i dont rate misbah, before you say he was there too)

Babar only cares about scoring his century and not about winning the game for the team.

At the moment, i rate him as a very poor mans M. Yousuf, who was also a very selfish player, but not everyone can be a javed miandad or younis khan, our greatest equal test bats.

1. Younis Khan played with a better bowling lineup which enables wins.

2. World doesn't give a toss if you rate or don't rate Misbah. Fact remains he was an able partner for YK.

[angrypathan]

Youis khan was doing it just afew years ago with a similar batting line up( i dont rate misbah, before you say he was there too)

Babar only cares about scoring his century and not about winning the game for the team.

At the moment, i rate him as a very poor mans M. Yousuf, who was also a very selfish player, but not everyone can be a javed miandad or younis khan, our greatest equal test bats.

Younis did it back when Azhar Ali was also performing. And you rating or not rating Misbah has nothing to do with the fact that he made valuable contributions to many of our victories, even if he was also to blame for many of our away losses. Babar is yet to even enter what should be his peak years. He's started to play match winning knocks in ODIs and it's only a matter of time before he does the same in Test cricket

[topspin]

So much hype for a guy who.has done very little, not prouced a single match winning test innings against a top team away from home.

Sa vs Pak 3 - 0
Australia vs Pak 3 - 0

Talk when you have achieved somehing of note, Bobby!

Youis khan was doing it just afew years ago with a similar batting line up( i dont rate misbah, before you say he was there too)

Babar only cares about scoring his century and not about winning the game for the team.

At the moment, i rate him as a very poor mans M. Yousuf, who was also a very selfish player, but not everyone can be a javed miandad or younis khan, our greatest equal test bats.

What I've noticed with a lot of your posts, you jump to conclusions based on preconceived notions/assumptions. If I'm not mistaken, you claimed that you don't even watch cricket? (except when its the WC), so clearly it seems you're speaking out of ignorance.

[Waleed93]

So much hype for a guy who.has done very little, not prouced a single match winning test innings against a top team away from home.

Sa vs Pak 3 - 0
Australia vs Pak 3 - 0

Talk when you have achieved somehing of note, Bobby!

He has not said anything wrong. In fact, unlike many other Pakistani batsmen, Babar has been extremely down to earth when it comes to comparisons with the likes of Kohli or Smith.

Pakistan losing against South Africa doesn't totally depend on Babar. He is playing in a mediocre team, surrounded by rubbish batsmen. In South Africa, he was batting with the tail most of the time, yet he dominated their bowlers with ease.
The rest of the batsmen have to contribute as well. No batsman can win you a Test match on his own.

In Australia, he was the top scorer as always. I hope you do know that Yasir was the next best on that list.
He can't pile up 300 runs every innings. When you have a bunch of nobodies like Azhar, Asad, Shan, etc... playing alongside one world class batsman, you should never expect to win an overseas Test.

The comparison with Younis makes no sense either. The bowling attack was much stronger during his time, with Ajmal dominating before 2014, and then Yasir came and started off like Warne. Apart from that, we had Azhar and Shafiq who were not as useless as they are today and used to actually contribute during Younis' era. Misbah was a very good batsman in the subcontinent as well, and Sarfraz was great during his short purple patch during the 2014-2016 period.

A lot of the players who played during Younis' era are still playing today. The difference is that none of them is even 30 percent as good as Babar.

[Fahdi]

I think he can achieve it if he plays more at home. We saw in the last test the difference playing at home can make, the batsmen never looked so much at home (pun intended) in the UAE.

[Green Patriot]

I cant wait for the day Babar hits his triple ton.

[Shazzam]

Screw triple I want him to beat Lara’s record.

[Captain caveman]

1. Younis Khan played with a better bowling lineup which enables wins.

2. World doesn't give a toss if you rate or don't rate Misbah. Fact remains he was an able partner for YK.

Why so angry?
1. The bowling line up were pretty similar in younis's last 5/6 years and babar's 4 years except for the last couple of series.

2. Shafiq was younis's main partner not misbah, who was a mediocre batsman in tests. And shafiq is still playing with babar.
I will say azhar ali was the other important bat at the time and he is still around, but is a shadow of the player he was. However, babar has partners in haris sohail, abid ali and M. rizwan, so i dont buy this argument that younis had better batsman in the team to support him

[Captain caveman]

He isnt the one talking. Its our journalists trying to get him to say stuff they can put on headlines.

I appreciate this and i know babar is a grounded guy and not a show off, but i also think he is a player more concerned with his own personal milestones and not necessary the team needs. I want people to stop praising him for his individual brilliance and only praise him when the team wins. This way he will learn its ALL about the team, not about his individual brilliance.

[HappyWarsFan]

Why so angry?
1. The bowling line up were pretty similar in younis's last 5/6 years and babar's 4 years except for the last couple of series.

2. Shafiq was younis's main partner not misbah, who was a mediocre batsman in tests. And shafiq is still playing with babar.
I will say azhar ali was the other important bat at the time and he is still around, but is a shadow of the player he was. However, babar has partners in haris sohail, abid ali and M. rizwan, so i dont buy this argument that younis had better batsman in the team to support him

Misbah a mediocre test batsman? You must know nothing about cricket LOL.

[Captain caveman]

Younis did it back when Azhar Ali was also performing. And you rating or not rating Misbah has nothing to do with the fact that he made valuable contributions to many of our victories, even if he was also to blame for many of our away losses. Babar is yet to even enter what should be his peak years. He's started to play match winning knocks in ODIs and it's only a matter of time before he does the same in Test cricket

I hope babar plays match winning innings in tests, but i fear that those will be against the weaker sides or against the top side at HOME only.
Babar has shafiq(2nd best batsman in the team) and he now has abid ali, haris sohail and rizwan for support, but azhar is almost finished as a player.

[Titan24]

Youis khan was doing it just afew years ago with a similar batting line up( i dont rate misbah, before you say he was there too)

Babar only cares about scoring his century and not about winning the game for the team.

At the moment, i rate him as a very poor mans M. Yousuf, who was also a very selfish player, but not everyone can be a javed miandad or younis khan, our greatest equal test bats.

At the age of 26-27 Younus averaged around 40 and had 5 100s along with around 1600 runs under his belt and he ended with 34 100s and 10,000+ runs. Point is a good player starts to become better with experience and more matches he plays. Babar is just 25, he will get better with time and will start to produce more game changing knocks. It isnt like he hasnt produced few game changing ones already, I have given examples of his first match in Eng and in UAE against NZ previously as well.

Nobody becomes Kohli, Younus etc from the word go, one develops into a great with time if he has the ingredients.

[Captain caveman]

What I've noticed with a lot of your posts, you jump to conclusions based on preconceived notions/assumptions. If I'm not mistaken, you claimed that you don't even watch cricket? (except when its the WC), so clearly it seems you're speaking out of ignorance.

Nope, i have been watching test cricket since 1982.
What i said is i have hardly watched as much test cricket as i used to in terms of all the big teams. I have watched all paks games. But they have hardly played any test matches in the last 12 months.
I watched babar play beautifully against england away and should have got his first century, but stokes broke babar's arm.
I saw babar play beautifully against SA and play the most gorgeous cover drives against an aging steyn
I watched babar score a wonderful century and just missing out on a century in australia against starc, hazlewood and cummins but he failed in the the other 2 innings he played.
So
England vs Pak 1 - 1
SA vs Pak 3 - 0
Australia vs Pak 2 -0 (not 3 - 0 as i stated earlier).

So 2 white washes.and the drawn series, he only played a small part in.

Out of 6 tests, his been on the losing side 5 times. This is not the record of someone who should be praised, in my opinion.

[Abdullah719]

So much hype for a guy who.has done very little, not prouced a single match winning test innings against a top team away from home.

Sa vs Pak 3 - 0
Australia vs Pak 3 - 0

Talk when you have achieved somehing of note, Bobby!

"Not produced a single match-winning Test innings away from home"

Let's use a case study here.

Sachin Tendulkar's away Test record before 2000:
43 matches
3326 runs
54 average
13 hundreds

Of these 43 away Test matches Tendulkar played before 2000, India won one.

Conclusion: A player who isn't worthy of praise.

P.S. This is not a comparison with Babar, just dissecting the logic on display.

Test matches are not won by one player, especially if he is a batsman.

[KingKhanXi]

Something tells me he is getting on his hype and getting ahead of himself. I hope not

[Captain caveman]

He has not said anything wrong. In fact, unlike many other Pakistani batsmen, Babar has been extremely down to earth when it comes to comparisons with the likes of Kohli or Smith.

Pakistan losing against South Africa doesn't totally depend on Babar. He is playing in a mediocre team, surrounded by rubbish batsmen. In South Africa, he was batting with the tail most of the time, yet he dominated their bowlers with ease.
The rest of the batsmen have to contribute as well. No batsman can win you a Test match on his own.

In Australia, he was the top scorer as always. I hope you do know that Yasir was the next best on that list.
He can't pile up 300 runs every innings. When you have a bunch of nobodies like Azhar, Asad, Shan, etc... playing alongside one world class batsman, you should never expect to win an overseas Test.

The comparison with Younis makes no sense either. The bowling attack was much stronger during his time, with Ajmal dominating before 2014, and then Yasir came and started off like Warne. Apart from that, we had Azhar and Shafiq who were not as useless as they are today and used to actually contribute during Younis' era. Misbah was a very good batsman in the subcontinent as well, and Sarfraz was great during his short purple patch during the 2014-2016 period.

A lot of the players who played during Younis' era are still playing today. The difference is that none of them is even 30 percent as good as Babar.

I have answered most of what you said in my replies just before this one, please take a look at them.
A couple of points
1. shafiq is a top quality internatinal batsman and technically far superior to babar in tests, but he is timid and cant handle pressure.

2. The bowling attack has only been weaker in these last two series due to amir and wahab retiring, but even then M. Abbas had taken over from them two.
Messi is still playing and shaheen is world class. Naseem shah has only played 2 tests but everyone sees his huge potential, so i am not buying this argument that babar is playing with a weak bowling line up.

My main issue with babar is that he is selfish and only cares about his own milestones and not the team.
Shares the same mentality as tendulkar!

[cricketjoshila]

Babar bhai, you have been doing well without talking. I hope thats how it remains m

[Captain caveman]

"Not produced a single match-winning Test innings away from home"

Let's use a case study here.

Sachin Tendulkar's away Test record before 2000:
43 matches
3326 runs
54 average
13 hundreds

Of these 43 away Test matches Tendulkar played before 2000, India won one.

Conclusion: A player who isn't worthy of praise.

P.S. This is not a comparison with Babar, just dissecting the logic on display.

Test matches are not won by one player, especially if he is a batsman.

Thank you for illustrating my point!
Babar like sachin are glory hunters, only interested in their own milestones and not the teams needs.

I dont accept that a bowler can win a test match for his side, but a batsman cant.
Score a big daddy hundred or better still a double century and the opposition will be put under alot of stress due to scoreboard pressure, which can lead to a batting collaspe and a win for your side.
Obviously, you cant do such things every game, but babar does not even try when he scores a century to go on and make it a big one, hes got what he wants and thats all he cares about.

[Captain caveman]

At the age of 26-27 Younus averaged around 40 and had 5 100s along with around 1600 runs under his belt and he ended with 34 100s and 10,000+ runs. Point is a good player starts to become better with experience and more matches he plays. Babar is just 25, he will get better with time and will start to produce more game changing knocks. It isnt like he hasnt produced few game changing ones already, I have given examples of his first match in Eng and in UAE against NZ previously as well.

Nobody becomes Kohli, Younus etc from the word go, one develops into a great with time if he has the ingredients.

You keep missing my point, his personality is of a selfish person, its all about him, not the team.
Give it a few years, if he keeps up this attitude, maybe then you guys will understand what i am saying.
Hopefully, he changes his attitude, but i doubt it.

[Captain caveman]

Something tells me he is getting on his hype and getting ahead of himself. I hope not

Just because he has been quiet, does not mean he is not arrogrant.
Sachin would be a case in point, the most arrogrant cricketer i have ever seen, with the most useless records ever.

[Captain caveman]

Just because he has been quiet, does not mean he is not arrogrant.
Sachin would be a case in point, the most arrogrant cricketer i have ever seen, with the most useless records ever.

Sachin was the one who started this mindset of putting your own personal milestones ahead of the team.
M. Yousuf followed and was called out by ramiz raja, on this fact, which lead to their very public spat on live tv.

Selfish players!

[Ahmed4472]

I have answered most of what you said in my replies just before this one, please take a look at them.
A couple of points
1. shafiq is a top quality internatinal batsman and technically far superior to babar in tests, but he is timid and cant handle pressure.

2. The bowling attack has only been weaker in these last two series due to amir and wahab retiring, but even then M. Abbas had taken over from them two.
Messi is still playing and shaheen is world class. Naseem shah has only played 2 tests but everyone sees his huge potential, so i am not buying this argument that babar is playing with a weak bowling line up.

My main issue with babar is that he is selfish and only cares about his own milestones and not the team.
Shares the same mentality as tendulkar!

Top quality bat's average reduced to 38.82 where as Babar has already risen to 39.66

[Danyaalr01]

Thank you for illustrating my point!
Babar like sachin are glory hunters, only interested in their own milestones and not the teams needs.

I dont accept that a bowler can win a test match for his side, but a batsman cant.
Score a big daddy hundred or better still a double century and the opposition will be put under alot of stress due to scoreboard pressure, which can lead to a batting collaspe and a win for your side.
Obviously, you cant do such things every game, but babar does not even try when he scores a century to go on and make it a big one, hes got what he wants and thats all he cares about.

His personal milestones are very valuable to the team. Are you saying him chasing runs is bad for the team? How does that even make sense.

[Captain caveman]

Top quality bat's average reduced to 38.82 where as Babar has already risen to 39.66

Shafiq is aging, his average will fall further, but what was it at his peak?
Babar will have a higher average, this is what i keep saying and people dont get it, he plays only for his milestones and not for the team cause.
How many scores over 125 has babar scored?

Of the 3 centuries babar has scored how many have been in a winning cause?

How many times has babar batted out a day for a draw?

These are the questions i am putting forward to you guys, dont just look at the century, look at the bigger picture.

[Titan24]

You keep missing my point, his personality is of a selfish person, its all about him, not the team.
Give it a few years, if he keeps up this attitude, maybe then you guys will understand what i am saying.
Hopefully, he changes his attitude, but i doubt it.

Selfish? What has he done or not done exactly to be called that?

[Captain caveman]

King Kohli and king Viv played to win!
Babar and sachin play to score a century.

Its all about the mentality.

[Abdullah]

Nope, i have been watching test cricket since 1982.
What i said is i have hardly watched as much test cricket as i used to in terms of all the big teams. I have watched all paks games. But they have hardly played any test matches in the last 12 months.
I watched babar play beautifully against england away and should have got his first century, but stokes broke babar's arm.
I saw babar play beautifully against SA and play the most gorgeous cover drives against an aging steyn
I watched babar score a wonderful century and just missing out on a century in australia against starc, hazlewood and cummins but he failed in the the other 2 innings he played.
So
England vs Pak 1 - 1
SA vs Pak 3 - 0
Australia vs Pak 2 -0 (not 3 - 0 as i stated earlier).

So 2 white washes.and the drawn series, he only played a small part in.

Out of 6 tests, his been on the losing side 5 times. This is not the record of someone who should be praised, in my opinion.

If we are pinning the series' on Babar alone, let's give him the England one because he didnt play in the game we lost in that 1-1
Let's have a bit of consistency lol

[Captain caveman]

If we are pinning the series' on Babar alone, let's give him the England one because he didnt play in the game we lost in that 1-1
Let's have a bit of consistency lol

Excellent example.
We won because of azhar and haris, who batted out a very tricky session after the englands innings and not giving their wickets away. Babar at the moment does not have the mentality to play such an innings for the team, he would go out ,with the mentalty that i must score runs because i want to score my century and would probably of got out, instead of playing out the session sensibly for the need of the team.

[Ahmed4472]

Shafiq is aging, his average will fall further, but what was it at his peak?
Babar will have a higher average, this is what i keep saying and people dont get it, he plays only for his milestones and not for the team cause.
How many scores over 125 has babar scored?

Of the 3 centuries babar has scored how many have been in a winning cause?

How many times has babar batted out a day for a draw?

These are the questions i am putting forward to you guys, dont just look at the century, look at the bigger picture.

FGS he is only 25 and barely started playing to his potential (probably still not yet).

More I read about your posts about Babar, I feel like you're trying to anti-jinx him. Which may be the right thing to do as we have gotten a gem after a long time and you don't want him to go down like some other failed promises.

Give him a couple of seasons and see the results otherwise no harm will be done to you because you don't care/like test cricket anymore. BTW is Babar good enough for your favorite formats? or can you suggest any Bradmans, Sachins or Kohlis sitting out because of Babar?

[Suleiman]

Hey how about you win us some games instead of thinking about 300 and 600.

Get your act together boy.

[Ahmed4472]

Shafiq is aging, his average will fall further, but what was it at his peak?
Babar will have a higher average, this is what i keep saying and people dont get it, he plays only for his milestones and not for the team cause.
How many scores over 125 has babar scored?

Of the 3 centuries babar has scored how many have been in a winning cause?

How many times has babar batted out a day for a draw?

These are the questions i am putting forward to you guys, dont just look at the century, look at the bigger picture.

Please enlighten us match winning knocks played by Asad Shafique in his 70 plus test match career. Babar already has a 127 score and highest score for Shafiq is 137. I don't know what are you trying to pull over here but my instinct is that you're defending Babar from jinxes.

[Captain caveman]

I dont believe in jinxing.

What i can see clearly but so far no poster on here can see, is the difference between a cricketing world class team player and a cricketing world class individual.

Babar, unfortunately, is the latter.

[Captain caveman]

I am not getting anywhete with you guys, so lets see what these guys can add, @MMHS @Rana can you share your views on this topic?

[Abdullah]

Excellent example.
We won because of azhar and haris, who batted out a very tricky session after the englands innings and not giving their wickets away. Babar at the moment does not have the mentality to play such an innings for the team, he would go out ,with the mentalty that i must score runs because i want to score my century and would probably of got out, instead of playing out the session sensibly for the need of the team.

Correct that was a key partnership
We also won that game because we picked the right team.

Thanks for proving everybody else's point that this is a team game and there are a lot of inputs into winnings rather than one man batting likes stokes headlingley 2019

[dhump]

Sure you should score a triple ton when your team needs you to score a triple ton.

[Mean&Green]

King Kohli and king Viv played to win!
Babar and sachin play to score a century.

Its all about the mentality.

Oh you’re so wrong about that virat plays for centuries he really does. If you want proof look at his first century after the World Cup he scored against West Indies and how he celebrated its just more often than not his teams win when he scores a century that’s the only difference. Rohit on the other hand plays for his team to win he plays completely selfless knocks.

[Captain caveman]

Please enlighten us match winning knocks played by Asad Shafique in his 70 plus test match career. Babar already has a 127 score and highest score for Shafiq is 137. I don't know what are you trying to pull over here but my instinct is that you're defending Babar from jinxes.

I dont believe in jinxing.
I take it shafiq's score of 137 was against australia, when we were chasing 450 odd in the fourth innings?
If so, then that would show shafiq, who is a timid chap, trying to win the match for Pakistan in the fourth innings, alas coming close but failing.
Babar played that game, how much did he score, especially in the 4th innings, if he played? Babar would be pretty inexperienced then, so i let him off. But what do i think would happen now if babar was playing that match - he would score a century in the first innings and get out for a duck or not much in the second innings. Wouldnt matter to bobby because he has his century and thats all that matters to him.
This sound familiar(
Well not going for a win, but a draw in the adelaide test a few weeks ago, yes i know babar only got 93 and not 100, but the same principle applies, he padded up.his average and the result of the match was inmaterial to him.

[Waleed93]

I have answered most of what you said in my replies just before this one, please take a look at them.
A couple of points
1. shafiq is a top quality internatinal batsman and technically far superior to babar in tests, but he is timid and cant handle pressure.

2. The bowling attack has only been weaker in these last two series due to amir and wahab retiring, but even then M. Abbas had taken over from them two.
Messi is still playing and shaheen is world class. Naseem shah has only played 2 tests but everyone sees his huge potential, so i am not buying this argument that babar is playing with a weak bowling line up.

My main issue with babar is that he is selfish and only cares about his own milestones and not the team.
Shares the same mentality as tendulkar!

Our batting culture is perfectly summarized if you think that Shafiq is a top class international batsman.
A player who averages 25 in one format and 39 in the other is average at best. The fact that he is timid and can't handle pressure without Younis and Misbah just adds more to his overall mediocrity.

Secondly, our Test bowling attack was mediocre even when Amir and Wahab were there. There is no need to make them look like the heirs to Wasim and Waqar. Their numbers and respesctive averages of 30+ show how good they were in Tests. Abbas had nothing to take over. He has been good in a few series, but now that his novelty factor is wearing off, he is starting to look ordinary.
We can't say anything about the likes of Naseem and Shaheen as their sample size is too small.
There is a huge difference between 2014-2016's Yasir and today's Yasir. Yasir in that period won us series after series in the UAE, in Sri Lanka, and even in England and was ranked 1st in ICC rankings at a time.
Today's Yasir is not even comparable.

To summarize it, Babar is playing in a mediocre Test team, where he is not just the only world class batsman, but also where he can't expect the bowlers to win him games consistently, as the experienced bowlers are rubbish, and the new ones are too young.

There is no need to bring Tendulkar in the topic. We would be happy to have half the batsman he was.

[Captain caveman]

Oh you’re so wrong about that virat plays for centuries he really does. If you want proof look at his first century after the World Cup he scored against West Indies and how he celebrated its just more often than not his teams win when he scores a century that’s the only difference. Rohit on the other hand plays for his team to win he plays completely selfless knocks.

Maybe you are right, but how many tests has rohit played?

[Saj]

Don't be surprised if this lad does score 300 in a Test.

The guy oozes class, what a batsman.

[Ahmed4472]

I dont believe in jinxing.
I take it shafiq's score of 137 was against australia, when we were chasing 450 odd in the fourth innings?
If so, then that would show shafiq, who is a timid chap, trying to win the match for Pakistan in the fourth innings, alas coming close but failing.
Babar played that game, how much did he score, especially in the 4th innings, if he played? Babar would be pretty inexperienced then, so i let him off. But what do i think would happen now if babar was playing that match - he would score a century in the first innings and get out for a duck or not much in the second innings. Wouldnt matter to bobby because he has his century and thats all that matters to him.
This sound familiar(
Well not going for a win, but a draw in the adelaide test a few weeks ago, yes i know babar only got 93 and not 100, but the same principle applies, he padded up.his average and the result of the match was inmaterial to him.

Shafiq has scored the most amount of soft runs in Pakistan's history. Usually when the match is already lost or he has no pressure. Please enlighten us a match winning knock from Shafiq albeit against any opposition and anywhere. And please don't mention his knock at Oval in 2016 because Younis's masterclass double overshadowed him.

[Captain caveman]

Shafiq has scored the most amount of soft runs in Pakistan's history. Usually when the match is already lost or he has no pressure. Please enlighten us a match winning knock from Shafiq albeit against any opposition and anywhere. And please don't mention his knock at Oval in 2016 because Younis's masterclass double overshadowed him.

You have misunderstood what i was saying.
Babar will be much more successful batsman than shafiq.
But shafiq has a better technique, his problem is that he cant handle pressure.

I think most experts will say shafiq is a top international batsman, certainly mickey arthur thinks so to.

[TeamPak95]

Don't be surprised if this lad does score 300 in a Test.

The guy oozes class, what a batsman.

Only a matter of time before he does. All he needs is good, consistent batsmen to bat with and make big partnerships with to get to that landmark.

[Captain caveman]

Our batting culture is perfectly summarized if you think that Shafiq is a top class international batsman.
A player who averages 25 in one format and 39 in the other is average at best. The fact that he is timid and can't handle pressure without Younis and Misbah just adds more to his overall mediocrity.

Secondly, our Test bowling attack was mediocre even when Amir and Wahab were there. There is no need to make them look like the heirs to Wasim and Waqar. Their numbers and respesctive averages of 30+ show how good they were in Tests. Abbas had nothing to take over. He has been good in a few series, but now that his novelty factor is wearing off, he is starting to look ordinary.
We can't say anything about the likes of Naseem and Shaheen as their sample size is too small.
There is a huge difference between 2014-2016's Yasir and today's Yasir. Yasir in that period won us series after series in the UAE, in Sri Lanka, and even in England and was ranked 1st in ICC rankings at a time.
Today's Yasir is not even comparable.

To summarize it, Babar is playing in a mediocre Test team, where he is not just the only world class batsman, but also where he can't expect the bowlers to win him games consistently, as the experienced bowlers are rubbish, and the new ones are too young.

There is no need to bring Tendulkar in the topic. We would be happy to have half the batsman he was.

We are talking about tests here only.

Most experts will say shafiq is a top international batsman. The aussies only rated babar and shafiq. The english rate shafiq and of course mickey arthur does too.

Between 2011 and 2016, which waqar and wasim were playing for pakistan, when younis was winning games for us?

3. We are a mediocre team, but thats not my point.
My point is babar is a selfish player and when the pressure is on, he wilts
..

[MMHS]

I hope he does one day - BUT, I am not sure though. The three triple hundred scorers for PAK are Hanif, Inzi & YK; with Javed having 280* as highest and Zaheer playing a wonderful 274. Both Javed & Zaheer could have got a triple in PAK had PAK’s home Tests allowed equal number of overs/Test (Imran had to declare keeping Javed at 280*, after 3rd lunch - which was basically post Tea on day 2 in ENG/AUS).

The common traits for all these players were that they are daddy hundred specialist - once set, I almost immovable object. Zaheer has more than 50% of his hundreds over 150, Javed had 6 doubles and at least 12 innings of 150+.... still these two guys failed to hit triple. Babar has a serious issue with concentration - if he is to hit a triple, more than batting skills, he needs the calmness to refocus after touching every milestone- 50, 100, 150, 200.... After his 258*, I don’t think in any cricket he has scored an 150; and he is into his 10th year of FC/List A cricket.

[MMHS]

We are talking about tests here only.

Most experts will say shafiq is a top international batsman. The aussies only rated babar and shafiq. The english rate shafiq and of course mickey arthur does too.

Between 2011 and 2016, which waqar and wasim were playing for pakistan, when younis was winning games for us?

3. We are a mediocre team, but thats not my point.
My point is babar is a selfish player and when the pressure is on, he wilts
..

Every great scorer is selfish - none more than Bradman. He played in those era of timeless Test and kept on batting for ages, which didn’t cost his team; but it’ll cost in modern era.

This is why contemporaries rate Viv Richards so high - guy played the game like a king and played with a heart like emperor.

I don’t mind Babar to be selfish actually- he plays for a team, for which if he doesn’t stand firm, sometimes playing out 20 overs becoming a challenge. If I were PCT management, I would have given him every comfort to keep on batting at his own pace .... and whipped other 10 a$$es to increase scoring rate.

At least I can expect if this guy Babar Azam plays selfish, he can hold on to one side .... if allowed others will waste lots of long hops, then throw wicket to another one - that’s exactly what is Imam Ul Haq. Did you see Shan Masood’s last dismissal - if he is the namuna of a Test opener, then Babar better be selfish and focus on scoring.

[moghul]

He should better not pick up the bad habits from some other players, would not advice him to start talking about tipple tons , juts do it, you can, don;t talk.

[Afhan Ali]

I have answered most of what you said in my replies just before this one, please take a look at them.
A couple of points
1. shafiq is a top quality internatinal batsman and technically far superior to babar in tests, but he is timid and cant handle pressure.

2. The bowling attack has only been weaker in these last two series due to amir and wahab retiring, but even then M. Abbas had taken over from them two.
Messi is still playing and shaheen is world class. Naseem shah has only played 2 tests but everyone sees his huge potential, so i am not buying this argument that babar is playing with a weak bowling line up.

My main issue with babar is that he is selfish and only cares about his own milestones and not the team.
Shares the same mentality as tendulkar!

You are spot on because younas khan won us the 2013 test series in SA 3-0
He was also alone worrier in winning the series in Australia 3-0 in 2016-17

He was the MOTS in those series

[Aman]

Babar is a more dynamic Kane Williamson.

Kohli is too talented and dedicated for him to chase.

[MRSN]

He is playing with a team of 9 or 10 journeymen. You can not expect one man to win you test matches with the bat. With the ball, maybe yes. Not with the bat. One man can not pull off a test match with the bat.

"journeymen" what a term.

[jiduguravindra]

King Kohli and king Viv played to win!
Babar and sachin play to score a century.

Its all about the mentality.

Every time babar talk iam sensing exactly what you said. On topic he should concentrate to hit more doubles than focusing on milestones like triple.

[Captain caveman]

Every great scorer is selfish - none more than Bradman. He played in those era of timeless Test and kept on batting for ages, which didn’t cost his team; but it’ll cost in modern era.

This is why contemporaries rate Viv Richards so high - guy played the game like a king and played with a heart like emperor.

I don’t mind Babar to be selfish actually- he plays for a team, for which if he doesn’t stand firm, sometimes playing out 20 overs becoming a challenge. If I were PCT management, I would have given him every comfort to keep on batting at his own pace .... and whipped other 10 a$$es to increase scoring rate.

At least I can expect if this guy Babar Azam plays selfish, he can hold on to one side .... if allowed others will waste lots of long hops, then throw wicket to another one - that’s exactly what is Imam Ul Haq. Did you see Shan Masood’s last dismissal - if he is the namuna of a Test opener, then Babar better be selfish and focus on scoring.

Thank you brother for posting.
2 brilliant posts by yourself, like always.
This post, illustrating :

' Babar better be selfish and focus on scoring."

Because the rest of the team are poor(apart from shafiq, in my opinion).
Sadly, this is the 'GOOD' SELFISHNES that babar does not have, that all great batsman have.

And from your post before this one:

"Babar has a serious issue with concentration - if he is to hit a triple, more than batting skills, he needs the calmness to refocus after touching every milestone- 50, 100, 150, 200.... After his 258*, I don’t think in any cricket he has scored an 150; and he is into his 10th year of FC/List A cricket."

This is because of the BAD SELFISHISHNESS that babar possess where his only goal is to score a century and once hes got his milestone he is happy and content and is not bothered about the needs of his team and if they need him to carry on - none of that is important.
The only thing important to babar is his milestone 100.

[Captain caveman]

You are spot on because younas khan won us the 2013 test series in SA 3-0
He was also alone worrier in winning the series in Australia 3-0 in 2016-17

He was the MOTS in those series

Younis has scored big double centuries and big daddy hundreds in england, SA and australia, not always leading to a victory but giving everything he had for us to have a chance of winning - Brilliant player.

Babar on the otherhand, if he gets his century, then his work is complete, he has achieved his target and his not bothered about the needs of the team and carrying on scoring runs.

[Captain caveman]

Every time babar talk iam sensing exactly what you said. On topic he should concentrate to hit more doubles than focusing on milestones like triple.

You get it my brother!
I am presuming you are indian?
Its easier for people on the outside(indians) to see this then people on the inside(pakistanis).
The same was true for sachin and we could see his selfishness but the indian fans couldnt.

Dont get me wrong, both sachin and babar are brilliant batsman and i am not comparing the two as batsmen. What i am saying is that both were motivated for their own personal milestones than the needs of the team.

[MenInG]

You get it my brother!
I am presuming you are indian?
Its easier for people on the outside(indians) to see this then people on the inside(pakistanis).
The same was true for sachin and we could see his selfishness but the indian fans couldnt.

Dont get me wrong, both sachin and babar are brilliant batsman and i am not comparing the two as batsmen. What i am saying is that both were motivated for their own personal milestones than the needs of the team.

When someone in the media asks "Hey Babar - what personal goals do you have as a batsman, he says I would like to score a triple century" - should he have said

1. I dont have personal goals
2. Ask me another question

People need to layoff Babar a bit.

After a long time we have a batsman to admire and celebrate in Pakistan - we should stop putting him down at every juncture. Learn something from Indian fans.

[jiduguravindra]

When someone in the media asks "Hey Babar - what personal goals do you have as a batsman, he says I would like to score a triple century" - should he have said

1. I dont have personal goals
2. Ask me another question

People need to layoff Babar a bit.

After a long time we have a batsman to admire and celebrate in Pakistan - we should stop putting him down at every juncture. Learn something from Indian fans.

Can't he answer, my goal is to win as many matches as I can for my team. Have you heard any top batsmen said like that, I can't remember.
He is the best Pakistan has, he should more concentrate on winning games than focusing on milestones.we don't know what actually thinks, if he his thinking of achieving milestones then surely he is not gonna win many matches for Pakistan.

[Captain caveman]

When someone in the media asks "Hey Babar - what personal goals do you have as a batsman, he says I would like to score a triple century" - should he have said

1. I dont have personal goals
2. Ask me another question

People need to layoff Babar a bit.

After a long time we have a batsman to admire and celebrate in Pakistan - we should stop putting him down at every juncture. Learn something from Indian fans.

I am not a journalist but what i know is journalists ask questions which seem harmless but are actually dissecting the defensive outerior wall of a player and getting right inside their mindset.

What should he have said?

I want to help make the Pakistan team, one of the best test teams in the world.

My personal goals are to contribute as much as i can with the bat for Pakistan, and help Pakistan become a force in test cricket.

My personal goals are to contribute more to the Pakistan team in terms of runs and inshaAllah victories.

What he said is he wants to score a triple century.
Pushed more, i bet he would have said to be the no. 1 batsman in the world.
Pushed further - to be the highest scoring Pakistan batsman of all time.
Me, me, me!
I want this, i want that!

'Theres no i in team.'

[Captain caveman]

Can't he answer, my goal is to win as many matches as I can for my team. Have you heard any top batsmen said like that, I can't remember.
He is the best Pakistan has, he should more concentrate on winning games than focusing on milestones.we don't know what actually thinks, if he his thinking of achieving milestones then surely he is not gonna win many matches for Pakistan.

Exactly my brother!
The team has to always come first in your mind, if you want to be a real winner!

[Abdullah719]

When someone in the media asks "Hey Babar - what personal goals do you have as a batsman, he says I would like to score a triple century" - should he have said

1. I dont have personal goals
2. Ask me another question

People need to layoff Babar a bit.

After a long time we have a batsman to admire and celebrate in Pakistan - we should stop putting him down at every juncture. Learn something from Indian fans.

What exactly happened was that a journalist asked "Are you looking to score 300 because making 200 or 300 in Karachi isn't a big thing" so he replied "For that, you need to spend 2 days on the wicket, you need to have the temperament. I have hope and confidence that if I can play a good innings, I can make a big score like 300".

In every other interview, he always talks about playing for the team, batting where the team needs him, etc. - One statement like this and all hell breaks loose...

I blame the journalists for asking such low quality questions. No technical analysis or attempt at gaining some insight whatsoever.

[Ahmed4472]

I dont believe in jinxing.
I take it shafiq's score of 137 was against australia, when we were chasing 450 odd in the fourth innings?
If so, then that would show shafiq, who is a timid chap, trying to win the match for Pakistan in the fourth innings, alas coming close but failing.
Babar played that game, how much did he score, especially in the 4th innings, if he played? Babar would be pretty inexperienced then, so i let him off. But what do i think would happen now if babar was playing that match - he would score a century in the first innings and get out for a duck or not much in the second innings. Wouldnt matter to bobby because he has his century and thats all that matters to him.
This sound familiar(
Well not going for a win, but a draw in the adelaide test a few weeks ago, yes i know babar only got 93 and not 100, but the same principle applies, he padded up.his average and the result of the match was inmaterial to him.

Babar made a 97 in the Adelaide test and got out and couldn’t save the match same as Shafiq got out on 137 and couldn’t win the match in Brisbane. Both were losses. In the second innings Babar was visibly tired and couldn’t add a lot. Thing is he will eventually start scoring bigger if he doesn’t loose his way. A lot of people before you totally wrote him off and predicted he won’t ever average 30+. They are nowhere to be found these days. He is in touching distance of 40 and IA he will enter his peak years with 50 average. If he does that along the way he will win a lot of matches for Pakistan.

A lot of your points will make sense if he is around as long as Shafiq and look pedestrian when he is the senior most batsman of the team. Right now he isn’t the senior most batsman but definitely is the best batsman of the team. Been averaging above 56 for two years when your other stalwarts are nowhere to be seen.

Don’t you think his 97 and 104 were more valuable than zilch contributions from senior batsmen.

[Ahmed4472]

You have misunderstood what i was saying.
Babar will be much more successful batsman than shafiq.
But shafiq has a better technique, his problem is that he cant handle pressure.

I think most experts will say shafiq is a top international batsman, certainly mickey arthur thinks so to.

All experts who rate Shafiq rate Babar Azam
way higher. Shafiq’s technique has been exposed a lot and have been discussed excessively on this forum.

Shafiq is not a top international batsman. In 10 years of investment he has totally failed to lift and project himself as the senior most batsman of the team. Azhar maybe a few tests senior but he never really was a batsman to begin with. As soon Misbah and Younis retired both have been duly exposed. Probably they always were good support batsmen and nothing more at all.

In one of your earlier posts you were degrading Misbah. I don’t really have a lot of love for him either but he way way more impactful and better batsman than Shafiq. His century at Lords in 16 was totally match-winning. If you have really watched cricket since 1982 you won’t have forgotten his match-saving 161 in India.

[Babar_Azam_fan]

Babar bhai, you have been doing well without talking. I hope thats how it remains m

True. He talked nothing and was quite successful till now. He shouldn’t get into talking, rather just do.

[Ronaldo7]

Babar bhai, you have been doing well without talking. I hope thats how it remains m

People are commenting on this without watching the video.

Babar didn't even being up the 300 runs thing. A journalist asked him that would he like to score a triple hundred in the future and he said yes (obvious answer)

[Captain caveman]

All experts who rate Shafiq rate Babar Azam
way higher. Shafiq’s technique has been exposed a lot and have been discussed excessively on this forum.

Shafiq is not a top international batsman. In 10 years of investment he has totally failed to lift and project himself as the senior most batsman of the team. Azhar maybe a few tests senior but he never really was a batsman to begin with. As soon Misbah and Younis retired both have been duly exposed. Probably they always were good support batsmen and nothing more at all.

In one of your earlier posts you were degrading Misbah. I don’t really have a lot of love for him either but he way way more impactful and better batsman than Shafiq. His century at Lords in 16 was totally match-winning. If you have really watched cricket since 1982 you won’t have forgotten his match-saving 161 in India.

I was refering to tests outside of asia. Misbah was a fantastic player of spin, but God awful player of pace - tuk tuk!
The century he scored in england in 2016 was excellent and quite out of the blue and yes it was a match winning innings. But i dont recall him doing much in that series apart fom that innings and of course blocking anderson and broad, over after over after over, until moeen came on and mibah walloped moeen all over the ground. And misbah has done little in australia or SA.
I do not recall misbah playing a test in india, please remind me of when this was?

Babar is a better batsman than shafiq, and shafiq has got some flaws in his technique, especially with the ball that comes in and he gets lbw or bowled, but his technique is still better than babars. Babbar has quick hands thats the key to his batting but his stance and technique could be better and he would be more of a rounded batsman, than a predominantly off side player.
Shafiq is rated by experts in england, australia and SA. But i agree with you that due to his lack of handling of pressure, he is more of a support batsman than the main batsman in the team. But he is still our secnd best bat in tests after babar.

[Captain caveman]

Babar made a 97 in the Adelaide test and got out and couldn’t save the match same as Shafiq got out on 137 and couldn’t win the match in Brisbane. Both were losses. In the second innings Babar was visibly tired and couldn’t add a lot. Thing is he will eventually start scoring bigger if he doesn’t loose his way. A lot of people before you totally wrote him off and predicted he won’t ever average 30+. They are nowhere to be found these days. He is in touching distance of 40 and IA he will enter his peak years with 50 average. If he does that along the way he will win a lot of matches for Pakistan.

A lot of your points will make sense if he is around as long as Shafiq and look pedestrian when he is the senior most batsman of the team. Right now he isn’t the senior most batsman but definitely is the best batsman of the team. Been averaging above 56 for two years when your other stalwarts are nowhere to be seen.

Don’t you think his 97 and 104 were more valuable than zilch contributions from senior batsmen.

Sorry babar got 97 not 93 but that was in the first pakistan innings and not in their second. If babar gets exhausted from scoring 97, then theres a fitness issue here.

Shafiq scored some runs in that series too, not as many as babar, but he did contribute, 76 i think, in the first test in pakistans first innings.

[Mesozoic]

The days of scoring 300s and 400s are over to be honest. Teams are focusing more on winning Tests than settling for draws. Best example is the recent Tim Paine declaration when Warner had all the time to score a 400.

[Ahmed4472]

As I said Misbah was no savior but still had a few great innings. He also cemented his place in the team after “peak years” so that may have been a factor towards his bad performances overseas. Though he had a memorable tour of NZ in 2011. Scored 231 runs and was the highest scorer from both sides. His scores read 62, DNB, 99 and 70*. I think was the first series win as captain as well. Other than his century at Lords he wasn’t too bad in the Eng tour and had a couple of 50s I think.

His 161 was match saving effort and pure class in 2007 series against India in India. I think he had another century as well in the same series.

Babar is no where near where we want him to be or dare I say where he will be. He needs to keep his head down and keep learning. As of today Shafiq and Shan both can claim the second spot but Abid Ali has already started leaping towards that. I still hope Harris Sohail has something left in him and can serve us another 3-4 years. Seem unlikely though. BTW aren’t you impressed by Rizwan and put him on second? He is been churning a lot of runs in recent years at domestic and never know he maybe the next big thing. He also has age on his side.

[Ahmed4472]

I was refering to tests outside of asia. Misbah was a fantastic player of spin, but God awful player of pace - tuk tuk!
The century he scored in england in 2016 was excellent and quite out of the blue and yes it was a match winning innings. But i dont recall him doing much in that series apart fom that innings and of course blocking anderson and broad, over after over after over, until moeen came on and mibah walloped moeen all over the ground. And misbah has done little in australia or SA.
I do not recall misbah playing a test in india, please remind me of when this was?

Babar is a better batsman than shafiq, and shafiq has got some flaws in his technique, especially with the ball that comes in and he gets lbw or bowled, but his technique is still better than babars. Babbar has quick hands thats the key to his batting but his stance and technique could be better and he would be more of a rounded batsman, than a predominantly off side player.
Shafiq is rated by experts in england, australia and SA. But i agree with you that due to his lack of handling of pressure, he is more of a support batsman than the main batsman in the team. But he is still our secnd best bat in tests after babar.

As I said Misbah was no savior but still had a few great innings. He also cemented his place in the team after “peak years” so that may have been a factor towards his bad performances overseas. Though he had a memorable tour of NZ in 2011. Scored 231 runs and was the highest scorer from both sides. His scores read 62, DNB, 99 and 70*. I think was the first series win as captain as well. Other than his century at Lords he wasn’t too bad in the Eng tour and had a couple of 50s I think.

His 161 was match saving effort and pure class in 2007 series against India in India. I think he had another century as well in the same series.

Babar is no where near where we want him to be or dare I say where he will be. He needs to keep his head down and keep learning. As of today Shafiq and Shan both can claim the second spot but Abid Ali has already started leaping towards that. I still hope Harris Sohail has something left in him and can serve us another 3-4 years. Seem unlikely though. BTW aren’t you impressed by Rizwan and put him on second? He is been churning a lot of runs in recent years at domestic and never know he maybe the next big thing. He also has age on his side.

[Captain caveman]

What exactly happened was that a journalist asked "Are you looking to score 300 because making 200 or 300 in Karachi isn't a big thing" so he replied "For that, you need to spend 2 days on the wicket, you need to have the temperament. I have hope and confidence that if I can play a good innings, I can make a big score like 300".

In every other interview, he always talks about playing for the team, batting where the team needs him, etc. - One statement like this and all hell breaks loose...

I blame the journalists for asking such low quality questions. No technical analysis or attempt at gaining some insight whatsoever.

Its not really about this journalist's question, which has exposed babar's selfishness to the public but rather babar's selfishness and mindset of scoring his milestone , which is more important to him than the team cause.

What would be interesting is to see how many teams who had a player score 300, went on to win the test and how many ended in draws.