'I have not seen a finer batsman in Pakistan' - Mohammad Yousuf heaps praise on Babar Azam

Mohammad Yousuf is one of the legends of the game. He is one of the finest batsmen Pakistan has produced. With 90 Tests and 288 ODIs under his belt, Yousuf has a lot of experience and when he speaks, Pakistan listens. Such is the respect given to the legendary batsman. Recently, in an interview with leading media houses, Yousuf spoke about Babar Azam and Misbah-ul-Haq coaching.

Yousuf heaped praise on Babar Azam for being in the ICC‘s top five rankings across all formats. Babar Azam has been one of the best batsmen in world cricket over the past few years. In 26 Tests, he has scored 1850 runs at an average of 45. In ODIs, he averages 54 with the bat. In 74 matches, he has scored 3359 runs.

In T20Is, he has an average close to 51. In 38 matches, he has scored 1471 runs. For his consistent performance, Babar has also been handed over the reins of the T20 format. If everything stays fine, the batsman will also lead the Pakistan side into the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup later this year in Australia.

“Babar is a class apart from the others right now. That is why he is in the ICC’s top five rankings in all three formats. Personally, I have not seen a finer batsman in Pakistan than Babar since I last played for the national team,” Yousuf said while speaking to the GTV News Channel.

Mohammad Yousuf is critical of Misbah-ul-Haq

Mohammad Yousuf was quite critical on how Misbah-ul-Haq has been handing the things regarding the Pakistan cricket. The former captain has been appointed as the chief selector as well as the head coach of the national side. Talking about Yousuf criticised the idea of saying why should one person get so much responsibility.

“I just don’t understand why to give so much responsibility to one man and I don’t see any planning in the way Misbah is handling things,” the legendary batsman said.

Mohammad Yousuf also questioned the recalling of senior players Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik back into the T20 side. After their string of series losses in the format, Misbah decided to recall Malik and Hafeez keeping the T20 World Cup in mind.

Yousuf said that the duo doesn’t have great batting record in Australia. He also said that recalling them is step backwards. “Why recall Hafeez and Malik when their records in places like Australia is clear. It is a step backwards for Pakistan cricket”, Yousuf critically pointed out.