'In this there is no one like Virat': Ex-Pakistan star on what 'stubborn' Babar Azam can learn from Kohli
While Virat Kohli continued his return to form at the 2022 T20 World Cup, Pakistan captain Babar Azam had a forgettable tournament with the bat.
Pakistan's hopes of winning a second T20 World Cup title was dashed by their close defeat to England in the final. While they could only score 137/8 batting first, the bowlers made life difficult for England in the chase and they managed to get to the target only with five wickets and six balls in hand. Pakistan's opening pair failed to click in the match, has had happened on a number of occassions throughout the tournament, with captain Babar Azam scoring a 28-ball 32.
Former Pakistan players have called on Babar to give up on the opener's slot as he and Rizwan are too similar in styles and tend to put pressure on those coming after them. Former spinner Danish Kaneria has now said that the Pakistan captain seems adamant about wanting to open for both Pakistan and in the Pakistan Super League and should learn from India veteran Virat Kohli on how to be selfless.
"Babar Azam has been stubborn about not giving up his opening spot. The same happened when he was with Karachi Kings too. He is adamant about this because he cannot bat in the middle order. His stubbornness is only doing harm to Pakistani cricket because of the slow starts," said Kaneria on his Youtube channel.
“When it comes to being selfless, there is no one like Virat Kohli. The team lost the World Cup under his captaincy, and he was made the scapegoat after that. Many raised questions about his place in the team. But he didn't give up. He gave his full support to the new captain and played at the number he asked him to,” he said.
Kohli managed to shake off his poor form before the T20 World Cup and continued in the same vein during the tournament. He was the highest scorer with 296 runs scored at a strike rate of 136.40 in six innings coming in at No.3.