Former Pakistan pacer Mohammad Asif made headlines last week when he claimed that he is still capable of bowling a maiden over to Babar Azam in T20I cricket. Asif did not rate Babar highly and claimed that he puts too much pressure on his partner in the powerplay overs by facing too many dot balls. Reacting to Asif’s comments, Babar’s father Azam Siddiqui recalled an incident when his son at the age of 16 hit Asif for 11 fours in a single outing.
"I selected Babar Azam in the trials after he faced two balls only, you can ask his father that I picked Babar in ZTBL trials. I rate highly, he is one of the best batters in the country but he plays dots in the power-play and puts pressure on Rizwan," Asif said in an X space.
"I can bowl a maiden over to Babar Azam in T20 cricket even today, he cannot hit the ball if you bowl good deliveries to him.”
Siddiqui shared an anecdote on his Instagram account when Asif was looking to make a comeback into the national team after a match-fixing scandal. Babar in his teenage years impressed the pacer with an 84-run knock. Asif eventually dismissed him and the teenager was left frustrated as the former used inappropriate language towards him. In order to comfort his son, Siddiqui told him that he hit the veteran pacer for as many as 11 fours.
However, Asif interacted with Babar when the latter was participating for the ZTBL bank team at the National Academy. He approached him and said, "Oye Chhotu, Kidhar [Hey, where are you headed?]," Asif said with Babar stating in reply, "Asif bhai, I am here for a trial with the bank team."
Asif put in a good word for the budding cricketer as he questioned the bank management saying "Why are you showing reluctance towards him? He scored 11 fours against me." He further stressed and said, "Take note of his name and consider adding him to the bank team; he will undoubtedly be a valuable addition."
In conclusion, Siddiqui told the public not to escalate the matter and urged Asif to take responsibility for his actions.
"Dear Mohammad Asif, every person bears responsibility for their own deeds. Should the occasion arise, Babar is ready to play a maiden over to demonstrate his respect for you," he concluded.
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