Hasan Ali congratulates Babar Azam for clinching the no.1 spot in ICC T20I rankings

Pakistan fast bowler Hasan Ali congratulated his teammate Babar Azam after the opener clinched the no.1 position in the ICC batting rankings for T20Is. The Men in Green were back to winning ways after registering an emphatic 3-0 whitewash against Australia in the recently concluded T20I series in the UAE. The visitors lost by sizable margins in all three games and were no match to the hosts. Sarfraz Ahmed’s boys will be pleased to have thumped the once mighty Australians, which would work in their favour ahead of next year’s World Cup campaign.

The Aussies endured a spectacular collapse in the first T20I in Abu Dhabi after finding themselves in tatters at 22 for 6 while chasing 156. Likewise, Pakistan batted first in the final two T20Is, and once again posted modest totals. However, Aaron Finch‘s side were in no position to chase them down. The skipper himself had a forgettable series as he managed to score a mere 4 runs in 3 appearances.

Babar rises to no.1 in T20I batting rankings

Meanwhile, for the hosts, opener Babar Azam was particularly impressive as he scored a total of 163 runs during the series. His consistency at the top of the order was rewarded with the no.1 position in the ICC batting rankings for T20Is.  The 24-year old in fact overtook Finch to sit at the top spot with 844 points, 5 clear of the Australian.

Pakistan will be pleased to see Babar in fine nick as they prepare for next year’s World Cup in England. He narrowly missed out on his maiden Test hundred in Abu Dhabi against Australia after he was dismissed for 99. Babar maintained his string of solid performances during the Asia Cup as well. He has also been compared to India’s superstar Virat Kohli on several occasions.

After he went back to the no.1 spot in the ICC rankings, Babar Azam expressed his elation on his official Twitter handle but also remarked that the team’s victory was more important to him. Hasan Ali, however, was delighted for him and replied, “You have been playing good cricket maa sha Allah! Soo you deserve Number one, keep rocking for us”

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