Tag: Babar Azam

DUBAI: Pakistan’s all-format captain Babar Azam got a fortunate push in the latest ICC Test Batting Rankings which propelled him closer to the summit.

Injured New Zealand captain Kane Williamson, who last played a Test in March this year, managed to cling on to the spot, he occupied last week.

Following the latest update, the battle for Test ranking supremacy intensified after Australia’s World Test Championship (WTC) Final’s hero Travis Head and Pakistan captain Babar Azam emerged as the newest challenger to the No.1 Test batter ranking.

The Australian batter jumped two places and up to second behind New Zealand veteran Kane Williamson on the back of his tremendous Ashes series against England that has already netted the 29-year-old a total of 266 runs at an average of 44.33.

Head’s rise up the batter charts has seen yet another re-shuffle at the top of the batting rankings, with Pakistan captain Babar Azam jumping three places to third and fellow Australians Steve Smith (fourth) and Marnus Labuschagne (fifth) and England’s Joe Root (sixth) all dropping one spot in what is an enthralling race for top billing.

Williamson’s top position remains in constant doubt as the Kiwi batter is just 11 rating points clear of second-placed Head and 22 from Babar Azam at third.

All top six batters are now in contention to get the hold of the top spot in the Test batting rankings as they are separated by minimal differences in the rating points.

There was plenty of good news for England following the narrow three-wicket triumph in Leeds, with young gun Harry Brook rising one place to a career-high rating and 12th place in the rankings after his superb half-century in the second innings and skipper Ben Stokes improved five spots to 18th.

England’s seamers also enjoyed some joy via the latest Test bowler rankings, with veteran right-armer Stuart Broad improving four spots to sixth behind India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and returning pacer Mark Wood jumping nine places to 26th overall following his Player of the Match heroics against the Aussies.

Australia quick Mitchell Starc claimed seven wickets in that Headingley Test and was duly rewarded with a three-spot jump on the bowler rankings to 11th overall.

The recently-completed ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier tournament in Zimbabwe saw some changes to the latest ODI rankings. It was no surprise that a host of Sri Lanka stars were the main beneficiaries after their unbeaten run at the event saw them named champions and helped them qualify for the 50-over World Cup in India at the end of the year.

Australia quick Mitchell Starc claimed seven wickets in that Headingley Test and was duly rewarded with a three-spot jump on the bowler rankings to 11th overall.

The recently-completed ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier tournament in Zimbabwe saw some changes to the latest ODI rankings. It was no surprise that a host of Sri Lanka stars were the main beneficiaries after their unbeaten run at the event saw them named champions and helped them qualify for the 50-over World Cup in India at the end of the year.

Netherlands seamer Logan van Beek (up 14 places on the bowler rankings to 52nd) was the other big mover following the Qualifier tournament, while there was some eye-catching improvement from a host of players following the ODI series between Afghanistan and Bangladesh.

Century makers Ibrahim Zadran (up 11 places to 16th) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (up 37 spots to 45th) were the biggest movers on the list for ODI batters, while star spinner Rashid Khan (up three spots to fourth) and left-armer Fazalhaq Farooqi (up 58 places to equal 33rd) also made some ground on the bowler rankings.

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The chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Management Committee Zaka Ashraf on Saturday, spoke to the national men’s cricket team captain Babar Azam and extended well wishes ahead of their Test tour of Sri Lanka.

According to the details, the newly-appointed Management Committee Chairman Zaka Ashraf had a telephonic conversation with Babar Azam and extended well wishes for their first World Test Championship (WTC) assignment and Asia Cup.

“Extend my best wishes to the entire team,” Ashraf told Babar. “We are hopeful that the team will triumph in the tour of Sri Lanka and the Asia Cup,” he added.

Babar Azam congratulated Zaka Ashraf on assuming the charge of PCB management committee chairman and vowed to lift the national cricket team to glory in the Asia Cup.

“Pakistan won the Asia Cup in your previous tenure and by the will of Almighty Allah, we will win it again,” said Babar Azam.

“We will leave no stone unturned to take the Pakistan team to new heights. We will take the field with great energy, Pakistan captain added.

Pakistan’s Sri Lanka Tests-bound contingent is due to depart for Sri Lanka tonight where they will play two Tests from July 16 to July 28.

It is worth mentioning Pakistan will start their tour of Sri Lanka with a two-day warm-up match, scheduled on July 10 and 11.

The first Test between Pakistan and Sri Lanka is scheduled to commence on July 16 while the second will embark on July 24.

Pakistan squad: Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (vc & wk), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Afridi and Shan Masood

Itinerary of Pakistan’s tour of Sri Lanka:

9 July – Pakistan land in Colombo
11 and 12 July – Warm-up game

16-20 July – First Test at Galle International Cricket Stadium
24-28 July – Second Test at Singhalese Sports Club, Colombo.

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Pakistan captain Babar Azam commented on the Pakistan-India clash and asserted that his team’s focus in the World Cup will not remain on a single team.

Pakistan’s Test squad is currently engaged in the pre-series training camp at the Hanif Mohammad High Performance Centre in Karachi from 4-7 July. Following the conclusion of the camp, the team will depart for Sri Lanka on 8 July.

The two-match Test series in Sri Lanka marks Pakistan’s first assignment in the third cycle of the ICC World Test Championship. The first match is scheduled to take place on 16 July at Galle International Cricket Stadium while the second Test will be held at Singhalese Sports Club in Colombo from 24 to 28 July.

Pakistan, ranked sixth in the ICC Men’s Test Team Rankings, previously toured Sri Lanka in July 2022 with the two-Test series drawn 1-1. They played their last Test series against New Zealand at home from 26 December 2022 to 6 January 2023 with both matches drawn.

Meanwhile, Babar Azam in the pre-departure press conference, played down the hype of the Pakistan-India World Cup clash, stating that his team’s focus in the mega event was not glued to a single team.

“Our focus in the World Cup later this year is not just team India but all of the sides participating in the tournament. We will be able to reach the finals only if we defeat the other teams. Our plan is to be equally competitive with every opponent,” said Babar.

“As a professional, our stance is to play cricket regardless of the venues and be ready to overcome all the challenges that come with different conditions. The goal is to represent Pakistan and help the team succeed by adapting to the different environments.

“Pakistan’s batters have dominated spin bowlers in the past so it will not be correct to suggest that our players fear playing against spin in conducive conditions. A batter is expected to do something different whenever he faces tough time against a bowler.

“Pakistan team will benefit from the input of Mickey Arthur [Director – Pakistan Men’s Cricket Team] as he was Sri Lanka’s head coach for a couple of years. He will have knowledge of the conditions in Sri Lanka and his experience with the side will further help us prepare for the upcoming series.”

Speaking on the likely lineup for the Test series against Sri Lanka, Babar Azam revealed that he will be preferring Sarfaraz Ahmed as his first-choice wicketkeeper batter before asserting that it is not necessary for the vice-captain to feature in the Playing XI, while referring to Mohammad Rizwan.

“It’s too early to say but I’ll try to prefer to have Sarfraz as my first choice. It’s not necessary for the vice-captain to play, it doesn’t affect anything. We will go with the best XI according to the conditions at play,” Babar Azam concluded.

READ: Zaka Ashraf assumes charge as PCB Management Committee chairman

Former Pakistan pacer and bowling coach Umar Gul picked wicketkeeper batter, Sarfaraz Ahmed as a better captain than current Pakistan skipper Babar Azam.

Umar Gul in an interview, was asked to pick between Sarfaraz Ahmed and Babar Azam. The right-arm pacer unhesitantly picked the Champions Trophy-winning captain as a superior leader.

“In terms of captaincy, Sarfaraz Ahmed,” responded Gul to the comparison.

Gul, who leads the all-time T20I Rankings with a record 857 rating points was then asked to pick between Mohammad Amir and Shaheen Shah Afridi and he picked his former teammate Amir.

Umar gul picks :

* Sarfraz Ahmad over Babar Azam
* Muhammad Amir over Shaheen
Afridi@iamamirofficial @mdk_gul #Cricket pic.twitter.com/augGCRRS7I

— Muhammad Noman (@nomanedits) July 4, 2023

 

It must be noted that Sarfaraz Ahmed is considered one of the most successful Pakistan captains as the side won the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 under his leadership.

He also led Pakistan to 11 successive T20I series victories amid his tenure.

Earlier, renowned Pakistan-based umpire Aleem Dar picked wicketkeeper batter Sarfaraz Ahmed as the best modern-day Pakistan captain.

Dar, while speaking on ARY News’ show Bouncer, was asked to pick the best Pakistan captain during his prolonged umpiring career.

He, in response, acknowledged all of Pakistan’s modern-day captains which included Shahid Afridi, Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hafeez, Sarfaraz Ahmed and Babar Azam but revealed that the wicketkeeper batter had the edge over the rest due to his decision-making abilities.

“I believe every one of them had different qualities but if someone had superior game awareness and better captaincy skills then it was Sarfaraz,” shared Dar.

“I think a wicketkeeper is a better decision-maker because he is well aware of what the bowler is bowling and that is why I think it is very important that a wicketkeeper should be the captain,” he added.

Aleem Dar further shared his opinion regarding Babar Azam’s captaincy and claimed that he is also performing well but highlighted the importance of having a good team performance.

“Babar is also performing well but if there is no teamwork and you are performing well [individually] or doing captaincy [is not that important] and hence I believe having a good team [performance] is the most important thing,” stated Dar.

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DUBAI: Pakistan’s all-format captain and star batter Babar Azam saw a dip in his Test batting rankings following the conclusion of the World Test Championship (WTC) Final.

As per the latest Test Batting Rankings update by the International Cricket Council (ICC), Pakistan’s star batter Babar Azam slipped to fifth as Australia’s centurion in the WTC Final Travis Head and Steve Smith moved up.

Scoring 163 across the first two days of the WTC Final against India at The Oval, Head jumped three places to claim the third position with 884 points and strengthened Australia’s stronghold on the Test batting rankings.

Besides Travis Head, Steve Smith also climbed up in the Test batting to seize the second position with 885 rating points at the back of his gritty first innings century.

Despite failing to score big in the WTC Final, Marnus Labuschagne remained at the summit with 903 rating points.

Consequently, Australia now hold the top three spots in the Test batting rankings while Usman Khawaja (9th, 777 rating points) makes it four Australians in the top 10.

Notably, The last time three batters from the same side occupied the top three positions in the Test rankings was in December 1984 when Gordon Greenidge (810), Clive Lloyd (787), and Larry Gomes (773) from West Indies formed the top trio.

Meanwhile, Babar Azam and Kane Williamson were the notable batters to slip in the rankings.

Babar last played a Test in January this year against New Zealand while Blackcaps skipper Kane Williamson, who has been out of the red ball action since March 2023 slipped two places to fourth.

Alex Carey’s exploits (48 and 66*) were also rewarded with a jump of 11 spots, moving to 36th with 592 ranking points. Rohit Sharma (729) and Virat Kohli (700) sit in 12th and 13th respectively after the match.

On the bowling side the most newsworthy move came from Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon, moving up two places in a tie for sixth with England quick Ollie Robinson (777).

Lyon was given little opportunity to bowl in the first innings final after his quick-bowling teammates seized control, though claimed one wicket to help his side to a healthy first-innings lead. The spinner came into his own in India’s second innings, taking 4/41, including the last scalp of Umesh Yadav, for Australia to lift the mace.

Lower down the rankings Scott Boland’s stocks continue to rise, moving up five places to 36th (534), four places ahead of Mohammed Siraj, who claimed 4/108 and 1/80 in the defeat.

Ravichandran Ashwin, in spite of being left out of India’s side for the Final, remains No.1 (860).

READ: ‘My relation with Babar Azam is very good,’ Sarfaraz Ahmed

DUBAI: Ireland’s batting prodigy Harry Tector pipped Pakistan’s superstar Babar Azam to win his maiden ICC Men’s Player of the Month Award at the back of scintillating performances in the month of May.

Harry Tector has been voted the ICC Men’s Player of the Month after a stunning month in May, Ireland’s first Men’s POTM award. He beat out tough competition from Pakistan superstar Babar Azam, and Bangladesh’s young rising batter Najmul Hossain Shanto.

23-year-old Tector continued to prove he is the present and future of Ireland’s team despite the disappointing end to their Super League campaign.

Reaching 21* before the rain came down during the first ODI against Bangladesh in Chelmsford, Harry Tector thundered in the second ODI to smash a career-best 140 from just 113 balls with seven fours and an astonishing 10 sixes.

What made Harry Tector’s achievements all the more impressive was that the No.4 walked out with his team struggling at 16/2 in the 7th over, but had turned the contest around by the time of his dismissal at the end of the 42nd.

Harry Tector and George Dockrell (74* from 47 balls) propelled Ireland to 319 in the 45-over innings, though Bangladesh, largely through fellow nominee Najmul Hossain Shanto, ran away from victory.

The Ireland batter backed up his credentials with a knock of 45 from 48 balls in the third ODI against Bangladesh.

“I’m delighted with the Award and would like to thank those who voted for me, however, cricket is a team sport first-and-foremost, so the Award is more a reflection on the performances and progress of the Ireland Men’s squad,” commented Tector.

“Without the support of Heinrich [Malan], Andrew [Balbirnie] and the dedicated group of coaches and players I work with, I wouldn’t have been able to win this Award.

“While Laura [Delany] and Eimear [Richardson] have won the Women’s equivalent, this is the first time an Irish player has picked up the Men’s Award. While a personal privilege, I believe it won’t be too much longer until more Irish players are being recognised this way.

“Thanks to the ICC – but I’m sure you’ll understand that this will only be a brief moment of reflection as we have a crucial Qualifier starting in a matter of days, and our focus will be solely on that over the coming weeks.”

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Former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed opened up his bond with his successor Babar Azam and asserted that the two cricketers share a strong relationship.

Sarfaraz Ahmed, in an interview, responded to a question regarding his ties with Babar Azam and refuted the speculations of a rift between the two cricketers. Moreover, the wicketkeeper batter also claimed to have a good relationship with other current players.

“My relationship with Babar, Rizwan and other players is very good. We played together for five years. Babar, Imam, Hassan, Shadab, Faheem, Rumman, Anwar, we all share a very good bond,” he shared.

Notably, since the ouster of Sarfaraz Ahmed as Pakistan’s all-format captain in 2019, speculations began to surface regarding a rift between Babar Azam and Sarfaraz Ahmed as the wicketkeeper batter also lost his regular spot in the national team.

While responding to a question regarding looking for a comeback in the ODI format keeping in mind the upcoming Asia Cup and World Cup, Sarfaraz Ahmed claimed that he is ready if the opportunity arises.

“As a professional cricketer, I am ready to play in every format. It’s always the decision of the selection committee and management to include players,” he said.

“As far as I am playing cricket, I try to keep myself fit for every opportunity,” he concluded.

Earlier, during a press conference in Karachi, Sarfaraz Ahmed responded to a question regarding his wish to play ICC Men’s ODI World Cup this year, stating that there is always a wish to play.

“As far as I am playing, there is always a wish to play,” he responded. “I want to play cricket,” he added.

Sarfaraz Ahmed is considered one of the most successful Pakistan captains. The Green Shirts won many accolades during his captaincy. He is the only Pakistani captain to have won two ICC trophies — the Champions Trophy and U19 World Cup.

Under his captaincy, Pakistan also won 11 consecutive T20I series and got hold of the top spot in the T20I rankings for two years.

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DUBAI: Pakistan’s all-format captain Babar Azam has surpassed England’s Joe Root in the ICC Men’s Test Batting Rankings.

Joe Root, who became the fastest to 11,000 Test runs with his 56-run knock in the one-off Test against Ireland saw the dip in his rating points despite the half-century which paved the way for Babar Azam to surpass him in the rankings.

Root’s rating points decreased from 871 to 861, causing him to slip to the fifth position in the rankings. Consequently, Babar Azam surpassed the former England captain with 862 rating points and secured the fourth position.

England’s star performer from their dominant 10-wicket victory over Ireland Ollie Pope who scored the fastest double century at Lord’s got the reward of his magnificent performance as he leapfrogged 10 places to secure 23rd rank.

Whereas, Pope’s fellow Centurion Ben Duckett jumped eight places to get hold of the 34th rank with 602 rating points.

Ireland displayed retaliation against ruthless England as the touring side attempted to fight back in the second innings and avoided an inning defeat.

As a result of their gutsy approach, skipper Andy McBrine’s unbeaten 86 lifted him 28 places while Mark Adair’s 88-run knock saw him jumping 32 spots.

Earlier this week, Babar Azam was nominated for the ICC Player of the Month award for May 2023.

ICC on Tuesday revealed the three nominees for the award which include Bangladesh’s Najmul Hossain Shanto, Ireland’s Harry Tector and Pakistan skipper.

Babar Azam’s nomination came on the back of his consistent performances in the home ODI series against New Zealand last month.

“Pakistan’s skipper once again stood up for his country, this time in his team’s home ODI series against New Zealand,” said the ICC media release.

Notably, Babar Azam is the only batter in the top five spots in ICC Batting Rankings across all formats.

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DUBAI: Pakistan all-format captain Babar Azam has been nominated for the ICC Player of the Month award for May 2023.

International Cricket Council on Tuesday revealed the three nominees for the award which include Bangladesh’s Najmul Hossain Shanto, Ireland’s Harry Tector and Pakistan skipper.

Babar Azam’s nomination came on the back of his consistent performances in the home ODI series against New Zealand last month.

“Pakistan’s skipper once again stood up for his country, this time in his team’s home ODI series against New Zealand,” said the ICC media release.

“After taking out the first two of five matches in late April, Pakistan went on to finish with two victories in early May to walk away 4-1 series winners.

It was little surprise that the positive results came through Babar’s achievements with the bat.”

“Babar joined Imam-ul-Haq for a century second-wicket stand on May 3, finishing with 54 off 62 balls, as his side went on to post 287/6. He went on to use six bowlers in his side’s effort in the field, as the tourists were bowled out for 261 in reply.

The skipper stepped up a gear in the next match two days later, claiming Player of the Match honours in his side’s 102-run win to go 4-1 up. Babar compiled 107 (117), his 18th ODI century, helping the hosts to 334/6,” it added.

It is pertinent to mention that Babar Azam is currently the No.1-ranked ODI batter in the world. He was also named the ICC ODI Cricketer of the Year for 2022, besides bagging the prestigious Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for the ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year.

Recently, he also became the fastest batter to complete 5000 ODI runs, breaking the record previously held by South Africa’s Hashim Amla.

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Veteran Test batter Steve Smith has spoken highly of Pakistan captain Babar Azam and star pacer Shaheen Afridi, calling them the players the home side must ‘look out for’ when Pakistan tour Australia later this year. 

In a video shared by Cricket Australia, Steve Smith lauded the Pakistan skipper for his exceptional batting records and improvement over the years.

“Babar Azam is a wonderful player. In the last few years, he has got better and better. He is someone we have to look out for. He is dangerous, he makes big scores and he usually does it at a pretty good pace as well,” said Steve Smith.

Babar Azam is currently the fifth-ranked batter in the longest format, scoring 3696 runs in 47 Tests for Pakistan at an average of 48.6.

In the same breath, Steve Smith also praised the left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi and warned that Australian batters had to be careful while facing him.

“Shaheen Shah Afridi, he came out here [Australia] last series. Since then, he’s got better and better. The ability to swing it back is obviously a big key for him so he’s certainly one we’ll have to look out for this year,” he said.

The right-hand batter also lauded the Pakistani cricket fans for coming out in numbers to support their team in every part of the world.

“Pakistan is such a proud cricketing nation. They have got supporters all around the world. Their fans come in numbers to watch the match which gives real excitement,” Steve Smith concluded.

Pakistan tour to Australia schedule

December 14-18: First Test, Perth Stadium

December 26-30: Second Test, Melbourne Cricket Ground

January 3-7: Third Test, Sydney Cricket Ground

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