Virat Kohli’s aura itself is different, Babar Azam doesn’t come close: Danish Kaneria

Former Pakistan cricketer Danish Kaneria refused to compare Virat Kohli's aura with that of Babar Azam's. The star India batter in recent times finished as the leading run-scorer of the ODI World Cup 2023, IPL 2024 and was adjudged Player of the Match in the T20 World Cup final while Babar hasn’t done much for himself, especially in international cricket.

He was reappointed as Pakistan’s white-ball captain earlier in the year but unfortunately, the Men in Green were eliminated from the group stage of the T20 World Cup 2024. His batting form is also under the scanner. In the ongoing Test series against Bangladesh, Babar has registered 0, 22 and 31, which put him in a difficult spot. After the end of Day 2 of the second Test between Pakistan and Bangladesh, Kaneria stated that he shouldn’t be compared with Kohli and that the latter has an aura that Babar lacks.

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“Who is comparing them? I am tired of hearing that people compare them. When you’re talking about comparing, look at the runs Virat has scored. He has scored runs all around the world. He is a massive player,” Kaneria said while speaking to SportsTak.

“Look at his stature, when he walks onto the field, his aura itself is different and he (Babar) does not come close, forget comparing them. All that is created by the channels to sell their product. I have had a lot of questions comparing them, but I have never done it. Look at the stats. When both of them retire, do take a look at the stats,” he added.

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Pakistan posted 274 runs in the first innings of the second Test at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. Captain Shan Masood, who took a fair bit of criticism for his poor form, hit a half-century and so did Saim Ayub and Agha Salman. However, none of them could convert it into a three-digit score. Bangladesh finished 10/0 on Day 2 and they would hope to take a lead to put more pressure on Pakistan as they are already leading 1-0 in the two-match series.