Once an ordinary ball boy at the Gaddafi stadium, Babar Azam, the Pakistani superstar, and cricketing hero as we know him, was born on 15th October 1994 in Lahore. He spent his childhood in the walled city and spoke of it with great pleasure. Babar Azam’s close cousins, the Akmal brothers, heavily influenced him; their stories and words inspired him to choose cricket as a profession. It’s not only about passion, but talent also matters, Babar Azam had an equal share of both. He was a ball boy at Gaddafi stadium during the 2006 tour of South Africa, and later, He joined a cricket academy where his greatness was polished. Babar Azam’s coach Rana Sajid mentored Babar and played a crucial role in his upbringing as a star cricketer. Babar Azam’s career was going to be a legendary tale, and no one had expected this.

The Inception

Babar Azam rose to the ranks slowly, he was selected in Pakistan’s under-19 squad for the U19 world cup 2012, it was here when he proved his mettle. He scored 287 runs in 6 matches with an impressive average of 57.50. He was the second-highest run-scorer. Never mind, this was long before his maiden international call in May 2015 which was Babar Azam’s debut year when he was selected for the Pakistan international team for the home one-day international series versus Zimbabwe. He impressed everyone when he scored 54 of 60 balls in his debut match. Hence Babar Azam had affixed his place in the Pakistan international cricket team. Later on, he was chosen for the Sri Lanka tour in both the test and one-day international squad, where he represented Pakistan in two matches but only managed to score 37 runs. Later on, he was given a chance to play against England where he scored 62 runs in the winning cause. Hence this young lad had made his mark on the team with his consistent and formidable performances. Babar Azam’s debut age was 22 when he became a permanent member of the squad.

Babar Makes his mark!

In 2016 Babar was selected for the West Indies tour. And here he did the unthinkable, achieved the unachievable, just at the age of twenty-two Babar Azam’s maiden one-day hundred was followed by two consecutive hundreds in the next two matches. In total, he scored three hundreds in three matches, telling the world that he was the next big thing. He scored 360 runs at a whopping average of 130 making it to the News headlines. He was also handed the test cap hence he played his debut against west indies scoring 69 runs in his first innings. In the same year, Babar Azam performed well on the New Zealand tour where he scored effortlessly. This young lad was meant to be a cricketing great and in the upcoming years, he proved this.

Babar Blitz!

In 2017 Babar Azam became the fastest batsman to 1000 runs in one-day international matches; he achieved this feat in 21 games. Then he was the fastest to 2000 and 3000 one-day international runs. He was also the fastest to 1000 T20 runs. In 2017 when Pakistan was looking for replacements for the likes of Younis khan and Misbah, they found Babar Azam goat. In June 2017, during the Champions trophy Babar played a pivotal knock against India and Pakistan came out victorious, lifting the champions trophy for the first time. Since then, Babar has led the team from the front, he is a game-maker, and after the retirement of the big names, it was he who carried the team.

Babar Azam wonders in the 2019 World Cup!

Babar Azam was phenomenal, relentless, and immaculate in the cricket World Cup. In a team that had always lacked good batsmen, Babar was a ray of hope, the light at the end of the tunnel.  Coming into the World cup Babar Azam was the number-one ranked T20 batsman. He was skilled, consistent, and stylish. Babar Azam’s cover drives baffled everyone, and his style made him the center of attraction. The most important knock during Pakistan’s run was Babar Azam’s century against the hot favorites, New Zealand. Babar Azam’s average during the World cup was 50 plus and he scored 474 runs, the highest by any Pakistani batsman during the world cup. It was this time when Babar Azam and Virat Kohli were compared. Although too young, too early, the comparison seemed fair. Who knew this young man had ambitions and dreams that were too high? Later on, Babar was ranked as the number 1 One day international batter as well.

Babar Azam’s Captaincy and T20 World cup 2021

Babar Azam was named the captain of the cricket team after Sarfaraz was removed. This decision seemed a bit extreme and controversial. Babar Azam was too young to lead the national side, he had the capability as an individual player, but leading the team was another thing. Babar had to prove this while coming to the tournament, carrying hopes of 220 million Pakistanis. As you know, Babar and achievement run side by side. Pakistan was off to a fantastic start in the World Cup. Babar Azam’s form was fantabulous, everything he touched turned into gold. And this was the first time Pakistan Beat India in the World cup by 10 wickets, Babar remained unbeaten at 70. Pakistan remained unbeaten throughout the tournament and were the hot favorites until they were knocked out in the semifinals.

Best in the business

Babar is a nice and friendly guy off and on the field. Babar’s best friend list is a long one, over the years he has fostered strong bonds with many of his teammates. He has had a great run as the Pakistan cricket team captain across all formats. He is the only batsman in the world who is ranked in the top three across all formats. Babar Azam averages 50 plus in all formats. Pakistan team has played 59 matches under Babar Azam’s captaincy with a 66 percent win ratio. Babar Azam’s current ranking is number three in T20 internationals. Babar Azam’s total centuries number is 26 across all formats.