'He's ahead of Miandad, Wasim, Waqar, Inzamam' - Rashid Latif on Pakistan skipper Babar Azam

Former Pakistan skipper Rashid Latif made a bold statement on Thursday, terming Babar Azam as the Don Bradman and Brian Lara of the current era. Latif also rated the current Pakistan captain above legends like Wasim Akram, Javed Miandad, and Inzamam-ul-Haq.

Babar had caught all attention in the past few years through his consistent performances. The Pakistani skipper was at his best during the 2021 World Cup and recently displayed class act when the Australian team visited the country for an all-format series.

“I had tweeted back in 2019. We were on the tour of England. I had written everyone’s name whom I had played with – Miandad, Wasim, Waqar, Inzamam, Yousuf, Younus, Saqlain. But he is ahead of them all. I am talking about a long time ago. He’s obviously become a big player since,” Latif heaped praises on 27-year-old Azam on Cricket Den’s YouTube channel.

“We can’t compare because here I’m not only talking about Babar. All these guys, Virat, Rohit, Williamson – all these cricketers who are playing ODIs, they are batting with 10 fielders,” he added.

Latif feels only one Pakistani former cricketer is better than Babar Azam

Making a big statement, Latif said that there was only one Pakistani player who was better than Azam. “I’ll talk about Saeed (Anwar). There hasn’t been a batter quite like him. Undoubtedly, the No.1 batter Pakistan has ever produced. I have seen him from close quarters and trust me, he was a charismatic player. He hardly would practice. So, to compare eras wouldn’t be fair,” he said.

Talking about the shape of the game back then, he said: “Today there are five fielders inside the circle. Back then, there used to be four. Anwar or Inzamam would eat the bowlers if one fielder was less outside the circle. They were greats of that era. He (Babar) is the Bradman and Lara of this era. That’s the thing.”

Babar made his international debut in the year 2015, and since then he went on to make 2851 runs in Tests, 4261 runs in ODIs, and 2686 runs inT20Is. He has represented Pakistan in 40 Tests, 86 ODIs, and 74 T20Is so far.