Babar Azam has better numbers than Virat Kohli at same stage of career: Inzamam-ul-Haq  

Former Pakistan cricketer Inzamam-ul-Haq has backed rising star Babar Azam, saying the Pakistan white-ball skipper has the numbers in his favour as constant comparisons with Virat Kohli rage on. He reckons that Babar Azam has an edge over Kohli, taking into account their initial days on the field.

The two modern-day master blasters are time and again pitted against each other by fans and critics alike for their impeccable playing styles and incredible consistency.

“Babar is always compared to Virat Kohli but the latter has played a lot more cricket and if you look at their stats and performances at the stage Babar is now, he has not done badly at all,” Inzamam told a TV channel.

Inzamam also backed Babar Azam to better his performances in the future. He added that Kohli has played for much longer and if their initial careers are compared, Babar Azam is ahead of Kohli.

“In just a few years he has achieved a lot and I know he can do even better than what he has done so far. Kohli has been playing for 10 years while Babar’s been here for three, four years but if you compare the initial days of Babar and Kohli, you’ll see Babar is ahead,” Inzamam was quoted as saying.

Inzamam also added how they had backed Babar Azam despite some poor performances and now he has emerged as the batting mainstay of the Pakistan team.

“Babar struggled initially in Test cricket but we never had any doubt about his ability so we persisted with him and see today where he is standing in all formats,” Inzamam added.

Babar Azam does not want to be compared with Kohli

Meanwhile, Babar Azam has said that he does not want to be compared with Virat Kohli and felt that he should be compared with the batting stalwarts of the past who have donned the Pakistan jersey.

“I don’t want to be compared with Virat Kohli. It would be better if people compare me with one of the Pakistani legends like Javed Miandad, Mohammad Yousuf or Younis Khan,” Azam said during a teleconference as per Cricket Pakistan.