Pakistan skipper Babar Azam on May 5 became the fastest to 5,000 ODI runs leaving Hashim Amla, Virat Kohli and Viv Richards behind. In addition to century, he helped his side win big against New Zealand to take 4-0 lead in the five-ODI series. The win also helped Pakistan become the no.1 ranked ODI team in the world. Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chief is in awe of Azam as he compared him to legendary batter Don Bradman.
"Babar Azam is no less than Don Bradman. In white-ball cricket, he has statistically become the best player in the world. I have never seen so much consistency from a player in such a risky format, the base of which is his technique and temperament. He has no technical issues, whether it is a grassy pitch or a pitch like Karachi, where bowlers generally struggle," Raja said on his Youtube channel ‘Ramiz Speaks’.
"He is fastest to 5000 ODI runs and has surpassed many legends like Viv Richards, which is a big achievement. He is the reason why Pakistan has become number one team in ODI rankings," Raja added.
The 28-year-old scored 107 runs from 117 balls including 10 fours. His knock followed by Agha Salman's half-century and cameos from Mohammad Haris, Shaheen Afridi guided the hosts to a daunting total of 334/6 at National Stadium, Karachi.
New Zealand faltered in run chase. Usama Mir's four-fer helped Pakistan end New Zealand's run chase for 232 in 44th over. Pakistan won the game by 102 runs.
“Team's efforts and the work from the support staff has helped us to be number 1, Credit to the boys for putting in the effort in tough times. The journey has been good. And has been a memorable one. Has been filled with support, sacrifices and struggle so far,” Azam said in the post-match presentation.
“The wicket played well today. We planned to build partnerships. Me and Agha built a partnership and decided to take it deep. We thought 310 was possible. Shaheen got us beyond expectations. As a team, we had decided we would test our bench strength. We need to prepare for future games and events. We needed to be sure of our best 15 or 16 players,” he added.
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