Babar Azam Is The Top Batsman In The World, Virat Kohli Admits Ahead Of Asia Cup 2023

Babar Azam Is The Top Batsman In The World, Virat Kohli Admits Ahead Of Asia Cup 2023
Kohli and Babar are strong virals in world cricket currently but also share mutual admiration for each other. Kohli’s words will win hearts of many in the Pakistani dressing room as well as outside it.

India’s star cricketer Virat Kohli heaped praise on Pakistan captain Babar Azam when he chatted with Star Sports on the strong rivalry between the players. Asia Cup 2023 is not too far and these comments from Virat is only going to add more context into the India vs Pakistan clash on September 2. Unlike many, who play mind games, Virat was quite happy to call Babar the best in the world right now. The former Indian captain told Star Sports that the first time he met Babar was at the 2019 ODI World Cup and instantly knew this batter was special.

It was Imad Wasim, the Pakistani al-rounder who had arranged the meeting after the India vs Pakistan match in the 2019 World Cup. “We sat down and spoke about the game. I saw a lot of regard and respect from him from day one, and that hasn’t changed,” Kohli said. “Regardless of the fact he’s probably the top batsman in the world across formats, and rightly so,” added Kohli.

Kohli did not shy away from saying that Babar is a consistent performer and that he enjoys watching him bat on TV.

Babar is currently the top-ranked batter in the ICC Men’s ODI Batting Rankings with a total of 886 points. Between him and Kohli, there is a big gap. Kohli will hope to close in on Babar with good show in the Asia Cup 2023, India vs Australia and the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2023. Kohli is currently placed at ninth in the ODI Batting rankings with 705 points.

In the last 3 years, Babar has really come of age and has seen big rise. He is also among the top 5 best batters in the world rankings in T20Is. Not to forget, currently, he is only player in top 5 of batting rankings across formats. Virat’s graph has gone down in the last 3 years, especially after pandemic but he aims to win his second World Cup medal after 2011 this year. He is working hard on his game and looked in great touch at the recently-concluded Test series vs West Indies. Asia Cup 2023 will be a good prep tournament for both the teams ahead of the World Cup.

India and Pakistan will meet at Kandy during the group stage of Asia Cup 2023 tournament, on September 2. There is a huge chance that they both qualify for the next round and face off again in the Super 4 stage. They can potentially meet again, for the third time in Asia Cup, if they both make the finals. India and Pakistan will play each other in the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup in Ahmedabad on October 14.ZN

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