Former India star batter and fielder Mohammad Kaif has cautioned Babar Azam of India's veteran pacer Mohammed Shami ahead of the blockbuster Asia Cup clash between the arch-rivals India and Pakistan on September 2, Saturday.
Kaif said that Babar is going to have a lot of difficulty facing Shami in the high-octane contest at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Sri Lanka.
India's premier pacer Shami has been an integral part of Men in Blue's bowling attack over the past few years. Shami partnered with Mohammed Siraj to bolster Team India's bowling line-up sans pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who was out of action for a long time but now has returned to the fold after recovering from back injury. Shami has picked 23 wickets in a total of 12 matches that he has played this year across all formats.
Shami also wreaked havoc in the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) where he grabbed Purple Cap for bagging 28 wickets for the runners-up Gujarat Titans.
On the other hand, Babar also made his intention clear in the Asia Cup 2023 opener with a towering 151 off 131 in Pakistan's landslide 238-run victory over Nepal on Wednesday, August 30. Babar's knock was certainly one of the most memorable one in the history of the Asia Cup as he busted plethora of records after notching his 19th ODI history. One of them was he shattered Hashim Amla's record of notching fastest 19 ODI tons. Babar took just 102 innings to step on this mega milestone while Amla took 104 innings to do so. He also became first Pakistani batter to crack 150-plus run in Asia Cup's innings. It was also the second-highest individual score in the history of the Asia Cup, and is only behind batting juggernaut Virat Kohli, who belted 183 against Pakistan in 2012.
It will be a contest to watch when Babar's batting might will be up against Shami's lethal bowling in the mother of all clashes.
But Kaif's big statement on Babar-Shami's battle right ahead of the high-octane clash has already hyped up the game.
While lauding India's star pacer, Kaif said that Shami is a fantastic bowler and he managed the bowling well in Bumrah's absence.
"Mohammed Shami is a fantastic bowler, his form is also very good. And even in Bumrah's absence, he managed the bowling very well. Even his form in the IPL was great. So he has a lot of talent. In my opinion, Babar Azam is going to have a lot of difficulty facing Mohammed Shami," Kaif told Star Sports.
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