'Babar Azam is no less than Don Bradman' - Ramiz Raja's bold claim after Pakistan skipper's 18th ODI ton

Former Pakistan cricketer and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Ramiz Raja  praised Babar Azam after Pakistan's win over New Zealand in the fourth ODI against New Zealand on Friday, May 5 at the National Bank Cricket Arena in Karachi. With this win, Pakistan also climbed up to the top of the ODI team rankings for the first time since the ICC formally accepted the rankings in January 2005.

Babar scored a century as Pakistan set a 335-run target for the visitors. He amassed 107 from 117 balls, including 10 boundaries. Meanwhile, Kiwis were bundled out for 232 runs during the chase as Pakistan took a 4-0 lead in the five-match series. 

While speaking on his YouTube channel, Ramiz Raja compared Babar to Australia great Don Bradman following Pakistan's win over New Zealand in the fourth ODI. He also said that the Pakistan skipper has statistically become the finest white-ball player in the world. He also lauded the batter's technique and temperament when playing in the 50-over format.

"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.

As a team, we had decided we would test our bench strength: Babar

After his match-winning performance, Babar was named Player of the Match and spoke about how he crafted his innings. The 28-year-old also highlighted the importance of his team testing their bench ahead of the 2023 ODI World Cup.

"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," Babar said.