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“They keep going on about the fab four, it’s the fab five and Babar Azam is in that”: Nasser Hussain

Why Nas doesnt talk about Fab Six with Asad Shafeeq as 6th batsman? He is more than good batsman as we know from his famous knock against australia 04 years ago. Remember how close we got to chasing highest target ever? and that too against australia in australia.
 
To be the best you need to be surrounded by great batsmen, so you know you can take your time and improve out in the middle, that won’t happen when you know the batsmen around you are poor and will chuck their wicket away any minute putting all the pressure on you
 
Thephenom said:
To be the best you need to be surrounded by great batsmen, so you know you can take your time and improve out in the middle, that won’t happen when you know the batsmen around you are poor and will chuck their wicket away any minute putting all the pressure on you
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poor logic, some of the best batsmen were the best and drove themselves to be better in their sides because they knew that apart from themselves, no one else could hold a bat. That expectation drives success, all about mindset.

many examples exist: Michael Clarke while he was captain, Shiv Chanderpaul throughout most of his career and even more so the countless number of times Lara didn't play and then retired. If were looking at the greats: Lara, Steve Smith all prospered with zero support.
 
Thephenom said:
To be the best you need to be surrounded by great batsmen, so you know you can take your time and improve out in the middle, that won’t happen when you know the batsmen around you are poor and will chuck their wicket away any minute putting all the pressure on you
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No, absolutely no. For last five six years, Brian Lara played for a WIN batting line up worse than this PAK side and he played some of the best ever innings - that SRL tour, 223 at Adelaide, 202 at J’burg ..... for a decade Shakib has been the top all-rounder playing with nobodies ..... Allen Border fought a lone battle against WIN & ENG between 1984-86.... I can go on.

Babar has to deliver against odds to justify the praise, otherwise there is nothing special scoring soft runs and maintain average.
 
MMHS said:
No, absolutely no. For last five six years, Brian Lara played for a WIN batting line up worse than this PAK side and he played some of the best ever innings - that SRL tour, 223 at Adelaide, 202 at J’burg ..... for a decade Shakib has been the top all-rounder playing with nobodies ..... Allen Border fought a lone battle against WIN & ENG between 1984-86.... I can go on.

Babar has to deliver against odds to justify the praise, otherwise there is nothing special scoring soft runs and maintain average.
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don't think i agree, sarwan gayle and shiva were much better than any pak bat playing now bar babar
 
anikrc1 said:
don't think i agree, sarwan gayle and shiva were much better than any pak bat playing now bar babar
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Did they play Test always? Shiva could be, but not others. And even considering them, what Lara did is mind blowing.
 
adzzy786 said:
Look how many matches he’s played away? Hardly any. So you can not make that statement. Needs more games
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If people are calling him one of the best batsmen right now and not after he's played many away games then one definitely can make that statement.

His numbers are padded by performances in Pakistan and UAE.
 
Babar Azam needs a few match winnings innings (or even match saving) against quality opposition in tests to justify the adulation he's currently receiving. Statements like the one from Nasser Hussain are premature and not justified at all: He's nowhere near being in the league of the fab four (or three imo as I don't count Root on current form), he's a good batsmen who has made a bright start to his test career with a few flash innings against quality bowlers but all to no result, those matches against quality opposition were already lost.

He has the talent for sure and a bright future, but give him time. The bottom line is that this guy isn't even test class yet let alone world class.

Needless hype and comparisons mean that he has too much expectation on his shoulders, and he isn't good enough yet to fulfil those expectations, as we saw yesterday and throughout this series.
 
sharmaji said:
How? :)
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All the batsmen you mentioned had played many iconic innings already, support or no support.

In case of Tendulkar, likes of Dravid & Ganguly arrived in '96 while VVS truly arrived on Australian tour which happened in '99. Sehwag arrived next year.

So as per you, Tendulkar waited till '96 to stamp his greatness on world batting charts?
 
Disappointing series for Babar so far.

You need your best players to turn up if you are to win test matches overseas.
 
He will be at his best the next time he tours.
His peak can be as good as kohli but he will never be as good as Smith for the simple reason that he is a stroke maker and likes ball on the bat even more than kohli.
 
He’s not had a terrible series by any means but it’s disappointing to not see him dominate
 
Strange start to his innings today - almost wanted to show Jofra that he's boss and could have lost his wicket but thankfully he survived; Seemed a little more assured of himself at stumps.
 
Looked unsettled against Archer today. The short stuff troubling him.

Needs a big score on Day 5.
 
It’ll be interesting to see how he gets on tomorrow, assuming there is much play.
Yes, he looks gorgeous through the covers, on drive, flicking of his hips.
But he looks suspect outside off and then gets set up with the in-swinger.
Is he a very good player or a potential great ? (Which Kohli, Williamson and Smith clearly are)
 
jeeteshssaxena said:
He will be at his best the next time he tours.
His peak can be as good as kohli but he will never be as good as Smith for the simple reason that he is a stroke maker and likes ball on the bat even more than kohli.
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Good observation. He is a natural stroke maker, who likes the ball on the bat. These types of players give you chance.
 
Moreover, I have noticed that he looks vulnerable when new at the crease. But once he survives 6 to 7 overs l, he normally scores.
In the last series against Bangladesh, he almost threw his wicket early on but when he survived initial period, he scored 143 by the end of the day. Next morning he got out in first over.
In the first test against England, he was in the complete control of his innings and it looked he would go on to score another century but then rain interrupted and in the next morning, he again threw his wicket early on.

He needs to learn how to stay on the crease for long hours and make daddy hundreds and grind out (when required)

He is among very few Pakistani players of the last decade who actully learned from their mistakes and improved. If anyone remember, initially he was very poor against spinners but he is much improved now (although i believe he still needs to improve his game against the spinners).

So, he can still rectify his issues and for that i would advise him to play full season of domestic tournament (Quaid-e-Azam trophy) this year and (if possible) county cricket next year, instead of playing t20 blast type tournaments.

Somebody needs to tell him that legacies are built and you emerge as a legend when you perform in test cricket.

Nobody will remember your t20 leagues heroics after few years.
 
Needs to score 75+ tomorrow to keep building his reputation.

An early dismissal and then it’s clear he is still a ways off from being in the same league as the Fab 4.
 
Babar needs to be compared with QDk, not the Fab Four.

Rest all like Rahul, Labu have to do lot more. Markram and Hope have fallen a bit.
 
hoshiarpurexpress said:
If nasser believes in every word he said about Babar, then where is the masterclass show on Sky with Babar Azam. He did one with Kohli, Smith and even Root. He is blaming rest of the world for not creating the hype. He can start doing it by making a masterclass show with him to further increase his profile.
Babar is a decent bat.. but to say that World does not talk about him because he is not from India/Australia/England is ludicrous. Players get hyped and talked about based on their performances.
Babar does not have a single breakthrough series against Top 4 oppositions.. neither in tests nor in ODI's.
Heck Virat Kohli made his name by first Scoring a glut of centuries against top bowling attacks. He was not hyped up before that. Give the lad some time to come up with some genuinely world class performances.
Not pretty 40s and 50's against top bowlers and centuries against minnow attacks.
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Tbh I think he would have done one with Babar if Bobby hadn’t flopped in this series after that initial 70
 
Only Fab 5 that Babar Azam should be a part of is him, De Kock, Labuschagne, KL and Latham.

Babar and Marnus will be the Kohli and Smith of this tier.
 
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Thunderbolt14 said:
Tbh I think he would have done one with Babar if Bobby hadn’t flopped in this series after that initial 70
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You’re not allowed to do such shows in current environment. Not saying he would have but point is he isn’t even allowed to right now
 
Babar's series: 69, 27, 47, 11, 63* (Avg 54.3)

A lowkey and off colour series for Babar, considering his form since the start of 2018. That last score rescued his series average however.
 
Firebat said:
Babar's series: 69, 27, 47, 11, 63* (Avg 54.3)

A lowkey and off colour series for Babar, considering his form since the start of 2018. That last score rescued his series average however.
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Yup. Makes it two times that he’s properly missed out on a ton here. Not to mention the Lord’s 2018 innings where he was pretty set.
 
Firebat said:
Babar's series: 69, 27, 47, 11, 63* (Avg 54.3)
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69 was the good knock. The first test, series alive, first inning, set the tone .... Problem was 69 was not a big enough score.
 
Firebat said:
Babar's series: 69, 27, 47, 11, 63* (Avg 54.3)

A lowkey and off colour series for Babar, considering his form since the start of 2018. That last score rescued his series average however.
Click to expand...

Thats a top series in England. What was kohli's average? That 47 he got was brilliant considering the conditions. Also read due to coronavirus didn't help.
 
Buffet said:
69 was the good knock. The first test, series alive, first inning, set the tone .... Problem was 69 was not a big enough score.
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Yup, threw away his wicket playing a loose one very early in the day. 63* was fine given our batting and the fact that the test still needed to be saved. 68* in 2018 wasn’t half bad either.
 
Now he’s going to be captaining PAK over the next week. That will be interesting too see, even for a casual observer of the shortest format such as I. Let’s see how he goes.
 
Had a decent series without getting the big score and dominating like he shouldve

Really needs to concentrate at the start of his innings and kick on Once set hes very very good

Definetly the best bat in the side
 
ataullah said:
Thats a top series in England. What was kohli's average? That 47 he got was brilliant considering the conditions. Also read due to coronavirus didn't help.
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Check kohli’s average on his second tour to England. This is Babar’s second tour to england too
 
He needs to make his starts count.

His most impressive knock on this tour was that 47 which he made.

However, some of the deliveries which got him out were really good balls which would have troubled any great batsman.
 
PK are putting too much stress on the lad. He Should not captain the T20 team( and outside T20 WCs he shouldnt even be playing this format too often) , leave to someone like Rizwan, if he players or Imad. Should be the captain of ODI and Tests team.
 
I'm happy that the fans on this forum are not hyping these numbers for Babar. We have accepted that he has a high ceiling and have standards for him which we should.

Babar had an average series and I rate that 47 better than any other score he registered in this series.
 
Slog said:
Check kohli’s average on his second tour to England. This is Babar’s second tour to england too
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59? Also, despite not having had the same length of tour and the fact that he had to retire hurt in his first one, I just don’t feel like there is any comparison to be had. Miles behind, especially given generation gap. Hell, if we really want to compare why not look at Steve Smith’s Ashes 2019 record? 774 runs despite not playing a Test if I am not mistaken.
 
Slog said:
Check kohli’s average on his second tour to England. This is Babar’s second tour to england too
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Kohli had an unreal series in 2018. Two 100s, one 90+ and two more 50+ scores. Not fair to expect that from Babar.
 
Babar made one mistake this tour. He went for a drive in the first over of the day when he was on 69. That one mistake cost him a hundred, cost him a bit of reputation and cost his team a game. How the complexion of this tour changes for Pakistan and Babar had he just added on another 31 runs when he was looking all set and dominant. The rest of the tour he was nearly flawless, amazing the repercussions one mistake can have especially for one as well acknowledged as Babar. It is a sign of his class that we are expressing disappointment rather saying he did well like we would for most batsmen we have had in the recent past.
 
Fahdi said:
Babar made one mistake this tour. He went for a drive in the first over of the day when he was on 69. That one mistake cost him a hundred, cost him a bit of reputation and cost his team a game. How the complexion of this tour changes for Pakistan and Babar had he just added on another 31 runs when he was looking all set and dominant. The rest of the tour he was nearly flawless, amazing the repercussions one mistake can have especially for one as well acknowledged as Babar. It is a sign of his class that we are expressing disappointment rather saying he did well like we would for most batsmen we have had in the recent past.
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Well, avoiding those mistakes will take him to the next level. This average or tons in Aus when the game was totally lost is not very meaningful in the big scheme of things. He clearly has potential and that's why most posters don't think that making pretty 40-60 runs is good enough for him.
 
Fahdi said:
Babar made one mistake this tour. He went for a drive in the first over of the day when he was on 69. That one mistake cost him a hundred, cost him a bit of reputation and cost his team a game. How the complexion of this tour changes for Pakistan and Babar had he just added on another 31 runs when he was looking all set and dominant. The rest of the tour he was nearly flawless, amazing the repercussions one mistake can have especially for one as well acknowledged as Babar. It is a sign of his class that we are expressing disappointment rather saying he did well like we would for most batsmen we have had in the recent past.
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Babars shot didn't cost the game at OT, we had a good score to defend and didn't do it. Babars 47 in the 2nd test was an excellent innings on a green top and it took something special to get him out. He was on for a 100 here, looked at ease again. Overall a good tour.
 
Mesozoic said:
Kohli had an unreal series in 2018. Two 100s, one 90+ and two more 50+ scores. Not fair to expect that from Babar.
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And it could have all been so different if he hadn't been dropped at Edgbaston in the 1st innings. Kohli is a brilliant player but the line between success and failure is very fine
 
Good series for Babar. Time for QDk now to tighten his socks.

It's between these two for the best after Fab Four.
 
Buffet said:
Well, avoiding those mistakes will take him to the next level. This average or tons in Aus when the game was totally lost is not very meaningful in the big scheme of things. He clearly has potential and that's why most posters don't think that making pretty 40-60 runs is good enough for him.
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We are on the same page here. Like I said that one mistake is what kept him from having amazing series and possibly climbing to number 3 in the rankings, instead this is just good or decent performance. Had he won the first test for Pakistan by adding just 30-40 more runs to his total this would have been the first series win for Pakistan in England in more than 2 decades and this series performance would be talked about in Pakistan's cricketing circles for years to come. To be a big player he needs to not just be consistent but grab on to those key moments.
 
Bewal Express said:
Babars shot didn't cost the game at OT, we had a good score to defend and didn't do it. Babars 47 in the 2nd test was an excellent innings on a green top and it took something special to get him out. He was on for a 100 here, looked at ease again. Overall a good tour.
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You misunderstood me I think. His 69 didn't cost us the game but it cost Babar the opportunity to win the game for Pakistan. That is what the best of best do, they don't just contribute more than others they drag their team the extra distance. Just 35-40 more runs and the cricketing world would have been abuzz with Babar's name.

It's still a good series for him. His 47 was indeed fantastic in overcast conditions when the ball kept swinging big. But good shouldn't be good enough for him. He was one error away from greatness.
 
Slog said:
Check kohli’s average on his second tour to England. This is Babar’s second tour to england too
Click to expand...

In fairness Babar only had one innings in his first tour, which was that fantastic 68* before he hot injured. So, this was his first full tour of England. He looked good in this innings, he just needs to start better and leave more deliveries. I am sure he will score tons on his next tour to England.
 
Fahdi said:
You misunderstood me I think. His 69 didn't cost us the game but it cost Babar the opportunity to win the game for Pakistan. That is what the best of best do, they don't just contribute more than others they drag their team the extra distance. Just 35-40 more runs and the cricketing world would have been abuzz with Babar's name.

It's still a good series for him. His 47 was indeed fantastic in overcast conditions when the ball kept swinging big. But good shouldn't be good enough for him. He was one error away from greatness.
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I dont think it a made a difference either way. The PK 1st innings score was excellent, we had enough runs to defends and should have won by 50.
 
I did expect more from this bloke but it was a solid performance considering the difficult conditions to bat in against arguably our greatest bowling attack!
 
Babar averaged 55 in this series and majority of our fans including me are a bit disappointed.

Shows how high his ceiling is!

Learning curve for Bobby. Hope he scores some centuries in his next tour of England!
 
Mueez said:
Babar averaged 55 in this series and majority of our fans including me are a bit disappointed.

Shows how high his ceiling is!

Learning curve for Bobby. Hope he scores some centuries in his next tour of England!
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Everyone knows hes got the talent the skills I was only disappointed that he didnt get a big 100
 
Azhar Ali: “Babar batted superbly. Conditions mostly weren’t easy for batting. The way he batted with authority, few batsmen did that in this series. It’s great for us how he is improving in Tests. He’s a world class player and we need to be patient.
 
Yk313 said:
59? Also, despite not having had the same length of tour and the fact that he had to retire hurt in his first one, I just don’t feel like there is any comparison to be had. Miles behind, especially given generation gap. Hell, if we really want to compare why not look at Steve Smith’s Ashes 2019 record? 774 runs despite not playing a Test if I am not mistaken.
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can't compare like that. Conitons were different. Kohli scored 200 runs more than the next highest scorer both side combined. Here i think butler and crawley comfortably outscored babar despite playing 1 less innings
 
We have high expectations as we havent seen a quality bat since mo yusuf...thats how pathetic the situation is.
Babz is our hope for sure inshallah
 
Mueez said:
Babar averaged 55 in this series and majority of our fans including me are a bit disappointed.

Shows how high his ceiling is!

Learning curve for Bobby. Hope he scores some centuries in his next tour of England!
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Spot on. Babar also had a lot on his shoulders because of so many passengers.
 
Firebat said:
Babar's series: 69, 27, 47, 11, 63* (Avg 54.3)

A lowkey and off colour series for Babar, considering his form since the start of 2018. That last score rescued his series average however.
Click to expand...

Those figures aren't correct. It is actually the following:

69, 5, 47, 11, 63* (Avg. 48.75)

The only really significant innings was the 69. The 63* was decent.
 
anikrc1 said:
can't compare like that. Conitons were different. Kohli scored 200 runs more than the next highest scorer both side combined. Here i think butler and crawley comfortably outscored babar despite playing 1 less innings
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I am not comparing. In fact, I am literally saying that it’s pointless to compare at this stage and also given fairly different situations in which both played.
 
Just passing series for Babar - his first proper tour and very damp weather. The series in itself just passed by and was heavily affected by weather. Not enough cricket to judge anything apart from Crawley.
 
Babar Azam: "I am disappointed that the England series did not go to my expectations and the starts I got, I couldn't convert into a big score; But I also learnt from this experience and analysed my mistakes, its my hope that I will not make such mistakes again in the future Test series and will score big runs"

"It feels bad when you are unable to score in the way you thought you would, and it is saddening when you are unable to meet the expectations of fans"
 
Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Kane Williamson, Joe Root, Marnus Labuschagne and Babar Azam. These modern-day greats make the experience of watching cricket wholesome and the fans keep on debating on who is the best batter among this lot. Kohli, who was a runaway favourite for being the best batter, suffered a blip in form after November 2019 and he failed to register a single century since then. He finally broke the dry spell in the Asia Cup which was held earlier this year, and that was also his first T20I century.

Former Australia captain Ian Chappell has looked at all these players, and he says, "from among these players on their best days, it's hard to surpass the highly competitive Kohli."

"Kohli is a fine player with a great stroke range, a highly competitive nature, and a thoughtful approach to batting. When asked why he doesn't indulge in typical short-form risky shots, he replied: "I don't want them to creep into my Test game." However, whatever the case - the ageing process, or his having retired as captain - Kohli's output has started to wane and he needs to rekindle the magic," Chappell wrote in his column.

"It's hard to choose the best player from that talented group. And when you consider that some old-timers preferred Victor Trumper's artistic style over the acknowledged best batter, Sir Donald Bradman, the difficulty is not surprising. From among these players on their best days, it's hard to surpass the highly competitive Kohli. His twin centuries in a failed but brave victory attempt at Adelaide Oval in 2014 remain my favourite innings among those produced by this group," he stated further.

Former England Test captain Joe Root is now leading the run-charts among these batters and earlier this year, he also went past the 10,000-run mark in the longest format.

"Root comfortably heads the list on both runs scored and centuries made, and has also played the most innings. He has an engaging desire to score and collects runs all round the wicket, with a wide array of shots. He is renowned for compiling centuries but he is the only player in this period to reach double figures in terms of hundreds made," said Chappell.

"Nevertheless, his inability to score a century in Australia despite having played 27 innings there overall is damaging. He has got to 50 on nine occasions without converting any of those into a century. A string of low scores at home against South Africa's strong pace attack this year is also a warning," he added.

Talking about Babar, Chappell said: "Babar is a complete player with his flowing drives and all-round shot range. His footwork is neat and there is an enjoyable artistry that makes his batting compulsive viewing. To round out the picture, he has a game that fits all three formats but his Test batting, with an ability to compile centuries, stands out."

"Josh Hazlewood dominated Babar in Australia in 2016-17, and this created some concerns about his ability on bouncy pitches. However, on his second tour of Australia he produced a couple of gems to enhance his reputation as a player to follow," he added.

NDTV
 
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