'Matching Babar with Smith is like matching Smith with Kohli': Australia star's big claim ahead of Test series against Pakistan

Australia's star southpaw Usman Khawaja was all praise for Pakistan's former skipper Babar Azam as both the sides are gearing up for a three-match Test series.

SportsTak Desk

• Thu • 30 Nov 2023

Pakistan's Babar Azam (left), India's Virat Kohli and Australia's Steve Smith in this frame. (Getty)

Highlights:

Australia and Pakistan are set to play a three-match Test series.

The 3-match Test series is slated to kick off from December 14.

Australian opener Usman Khawaja anticipates a tough battle against Pakistan's formidable batting lineup, touted as the strongest in recent years. The upcoming three-match Test series, commencing on December 14 at Perth Stadium, will witness Pakistan's quest to replicate their 1995 Test series victory in Australia.

Khawaja, in an interview, lauded Pakistan's batting prowess, particularly the trio of Babar Azam, Imam-ul-Haq, and Abdullah Shafique. He acknowledged Pakistan's status as one of the world's top teams.

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“Pakistan is one of the better teams in the world. They have good batting and always have great fast bowlers. Looking at the past teams, I think this is the strongest Pakistan batting lineup coming over. Babar Azam is one of the best batsmen in the world. Imam ul Haq and Abdullah Shafique have scored a lot of runs. I am very excited about this challenge,” Khawaja said.

Khawaja likened the prospect of facing Babar Azam to the excitement of witnessing a clash between Steve Smith and Virat Kohli, two batting stalwarts of modern cricket. He hailed Babar as a top-tier all-format batsman, particularly adept at excelling on foreign soil.

“Babar Azam is one of the best batsmen in all three formats. Steve Smith is the greatest batsman of our era. When they both will be playing here in the Benaud-Qadir series, it would be exciting. Matching Babar with Smith is almost like matching Smith with Kohli.”

“One of the great things about Babar is he does not score only in Pakistan; he scores runs overseas as well. He has scored a hundred here in the past,” Khawaja added.

Khawaja underscored the perils facing openers when confronted with swinging deliveries under overcast Australian skies. He acknowledged the formidable pace and swing prowess of both Shaheen Shah Afridi and Mitchell Starc, two bowling stalwarts renowned for their mastery of seam movement.

“I think Shaheen Shah and Mitchell Starc, both are very fast bowlers, and both can bowl up to 145. We know Starc can swing the new ball. Shaheen has a very good wrist. He definitely swings the ball. When it’s overcast in Australian conditions, if a fast bowler is swinging the ball, it makes our job as an opener a bit tough. This is what you rebel for, this is what you play for,” he concluded.

Pakistan's squad for Test series against Australia

Babar Azam, Hasan Ali, Shan Masood (captain), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi.