Is Babar Azam the most over-hyped cricketer in Pakistan's history?

[Khan12]

There are two primary issues with Babar’s batting that have prevented him from taking his game to the next level.

(1) He is too reliant on loose deliveries to score runs and find boundaries. Unless the bowlers bowl him juicy half-volleys or give him width, he struggles to get on top of the bowling. The truly best batsmen have the ability to punish good bowling as well.

(2) His survival rate against exceptional deliveries is low. Again, the truly great batsman have the ability to survive excellent deliveries.

If he can work on these two major flaws in his game, he has all the ability to reach the level of Root, Smith and Williamson.

I agree specially the first one. He needs to take a risk or 2.

 

[cricketAXEpert]

I have never seen a player hyped this much despite having a nothing test average and an equally mediocre first class average. He is keeping out much better batsman such as Fawad and Salahuddin just because of this hype.

Nope, Hasan Ali is the most over hyped cricketer in Pakistan

 

[cririri]

Exceptional deliveries don't look exceptional when they are well played,babar was playing cummins easily when fakhar/imam made every balls look like a jaffa.
You couldn't do much about the kind of ball he got yesterday apart from hoping that it miss the stump or you somehow get an inside edge/something on it.

 

[muqarrab]

Bara is fast becoming present day Hafeez. looks imperious is his small innings before finding ways to get out

 

[cririri]

Nope, Hasan Ali is the most over hyped cricketer in Pakistan

You sure it isn't the new imran khan i ?

 

[re82h]

Babar is fast becoming present day Hafeez. looks imperious is his small innings before finding ways to get out

Exactly my opinion.

 

[marlonbrowndo]

Look at your team and your whole cricketing culture. Then look at Babar. Pakistani fans are truly clueless and deserve this ranking

That being said, there are areas where Babar can definitely improve and I’m sure he’s working hard

 

[marlonbrowndo]

Let’s drop Babar for a year just to show these lunatics what will happen without him. The same people will start moaning and crying and it’ll be so much fun to watch. Just as it is now

 

[Zeeraq]

Babar Azam is the least of Pakistan's worries at the moment, first, we need to solve the issue of probably the most shambolic middle order in the world.

 

[Ronaldo7]

Babar Azam has a big weakness against Spinners. He can't read them. I remember babar's dismissal against kuldeep in the Asia cup. He was completely clueless.

No he's not overhyped. People have realised that he isn't winning us matches and hopefully babar can improve.

 

[Mp812]

Babar Azam has a big weakness against Spinners. He can't read them. I remember babar's dismissal against kuldeep in the Asia cup. He was completely clueless.

No he's not overhyped. People have realised that he isn't winning us matches and hopefully babar can improve.

and in WORLD CUP

 

[The_Odd_One]

That's because they are both great batsmen. You make it sound like Pakistan has some divine right to produce ATG batsmen, when in reality they are struggling to produce even two international class ones.

It says everything when the most sensible posts are by Indian fan Hyperion66.

First of all, Kane Williamson is not even among the top 10 ODI batsman of his time and Babar is even worse than him which shows how hyped he is when he is consistently compared with Kohli, Root, etc.

Second, which ATG batsman has Pakistan produced in the last 2 decades? Mohammad Yousuf was the last world class batsman from Pakistan who debuted in 1998!

 

[Mujtaba2900]

Babar Azam has a big weakness against Spinners. He can't read them. I remember babar's dismissal against kuldeep in the Asia cup. He was completely clueless.

No he's not overhyped. People have realised that he isn't winning us matches and hopefully babar can improve.

There there People .
He actually Can read Spinners Really .He Has Only Gotten out By spinnes 3 Times In Last 17 Innings
1 .by Hendricks Agianst south Africa.
2.by Moeen Ali Agianst England
3.by Kuldeep Agianst India and don't Forget It was one hell of a delivery And it turned sharply.

 

[Mujtaba2900]

Exceptional deliveries don't look exceptional when they are well played,babar was playing cummins easily when fakhar/imam made every balls look like a jaffa.
You couldn't do much about the kind of ball he got yesterday apart from hoping that it miss the stump or you somehow get an inside edge/something on it.

Exactly my Point sometimes you have to give bowler credit .

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

Look at the the batsmen around Root, Kohli and Williamson.

Now look at the batsmen around Babar.

When you are batting with Bairstow, Roy, Butler, Morgan and Stokes, fielders are farther back. They are under an onslaught. Easy to then play your own game.

When you are Babar, one wicket away from a total calamity, the mindset is entirely different. Rotate strike, hit four or preserve wicket?

Put him in England and watch his game go up another gear.

 

[Khan12]

Look at the the batsmen around Root, Kohli and Williamson.

Now look at the batsmen around Babar.

When you are batting with Bairstow, Roy, Butler, Morgan and Stokes, fielders are farther back. They are under an onslaught. Easy to then play your own game.

When you are Babar, one wicket away from a total calamity, the mindset is entirely different. Rotate strike, hit four or preserve wicket?

Put him in England and watch his game go up another gear.

Thank you. Nailed it.

 

[Mueez]

Look at the the batsmen around Root, Kohli and Williamson.

Now look at the batsmen around Babar.

When you are batting with Bairstow, Roy, Butler, Morgan and Stokes, fielders are farther back. They are under an onslaught. Easy to then play your own game.

When you are Babar, one wicket away from a total calamity, the mindset is entirely different. Rotate strike, hit four or preserve wicket?

Put him in England and watch his game go up another gear.

Couldn’t explain it better.

 

[Sunzi]

Look at the the batsmen around Root, Kohli and Williamson.

Now look at the batsmen around Babar.

When you are batting with Bairstow, Roy, Butler, Morgan and Stokes, fielders are farther back. They are under an onslaught. Easy to then play your own game.

When you are Babar, one wicket away from a total calamity, the mindset is entirely different. Rotate strike, hit four or preserve wicket?

Put him in England and watch his game go up another gear.

Doubt it.

Like he cares or factors in his team-mates around him. Your post masks his inability to do the things that players he's supposedly likened to are capable of. Heck sometimes his best shots even look mis-timed.

No shot placement, rotation of strike, acceleration when required.

A good solid bat that I have confidence in ensuring 35-40 runs, absolutely - beyond that, I think you have given him more credit than he deserves.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

Doubt it.

Like he cares or factors in his team-mates around him. Your post masks his inability to do the things that players he's supposedly likened to are capable of. Heck sometimes his best shots even look mis-timed.

No shot placement, rotation of strike, acceleration when required.

A good solid bat that I have confidence in ensuring 35-40 runs, absolutely - beyond that, I think you have given him more credit than he deserves.

No I haven't. Talk with facts.

ODI strike rates
86.11 Babar Azam
87.62 Joe Root
82.28 Kane Williamson
93.07 Virat Kohli

Babar is doing OK despite all the constraints. He will go up another gear in any half decent team.

 

[Chokli]

Look at the the batsmen around Root, Kohli and Williamson.

Now look at the batsmen around Babar.

When you are batting with Bairstow, Roy, Butler, Morgan and Stokes, fielders are farther back. They are under an onslaught. Easy to then play your own game.

When you are Babar, one wicket away from a total calamity, the mindset is entirely different. Rotate strike, hit four or preserve wicket?

Put him in England and watch his game go up another gear.

Hell, even if he was in the Bangladeshi team he'd go up another gear.

When your tail starts at 4; there is way too much pressure on Babar

 

[Sunzi]

No I haven't. Talk with facts.

ODI strike rates
86.11 Babar Azam
87.62 Joe Root
82.28 Kane Williamson
93.07 Virat Kohli

Babar is doing OK despite all the constraints. He will go up another gear in any half decent team.

Yeah, his numbers are there - do you think they tell the whole story?

If we're gonna base this solely on numbers ("facts"), I'm not even gonna bother as I will lose the argument. Threads like this exist because people do not believe the hype surrounding Babar, I am one of them.

He IS a good player, indeed - I think he offers Pakistan stability unlike in previous years. When he comes to the crease I believe he will guarantee you a score close to his average, yes. But when I watch him bat, when it matters, I do not feel he is the difference maker or the catalyst for Pakistan's batting... pr koi nahi, his stats say he has a 50 average and an 86 strike rate.

Theek hai.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

Yeah, his numbers are there - do you think they tell the whole story?

If we're gonna base this solely on numbers ("facts"), I'm not even gonna bother as I will lose the argument. Threads like this exist because people do not believe the hype surrounding Babar, I am one of them.

He IS a good player, indeed - I think he offers Pakistan stability unlike in previous years. When he comes to the crease I believe he will guarantee you a score close to his average, yes. But when I watch him bat, when it matters, I do not feel he is the difference maker or the catalyst for Pakistan's batting... pr koi nahi, his stats say he has a 50 average and an 86 strike rate.

Theek hai.

I will concede this point. He does NOT take his team home under pressure.

 

[Sunzi]

I will concede this point. He does NOT take his team home under pressure.

Much respect

 

[Hectic]

«Mushfiq’s sweeping is like Babar Azam’s driving, it’s perfection» - Mel Jones

«That’s high praise Mel. Babar Azam’s driving is like Picasso» - Ian Bishop

All commentators rate him. There's a reason for the hype. Meanwhile Pakistan fans and media are only interested in breaking him down by calling him selfish, mentally/psychically weak etc.

 

[OmaIR1]

Easily.

He seems to be a consistent 50 scorer which is poor based on the hype he receives. We need match winners like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli who go on to punish the opposition if they get to 50 and take the game deep. Babar Azam only has textbook shots that look great on camera. His rotation of the strike is terrible and he can never convert his 50s into big scores.

 

[Khan12]

Easily.

He seems to be a consistent 50 scorer which is poor based on the hype he receives. We need match winners like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli who go on to punish the opposition if they get to 50 and take the game deep. Babar Azam only has textbook shots that look great on camera. His rotation of the strike is terrible and he can never convert his 50s into big scores.

I say replace him with someone like fawad alam. what do you say?

 

[yasir]

People are talking about dropping him from the team, Are you kidding me, Some of the Pakistani fans have little to no Cricketing IQ

Babar Azam is by far the best Batsmen we have seen in last 10+ years, after MoYo, he is the best. His issues are all fixable. I would like PCB to push for him (which should not be that difficult, considering how much praise he gets in WC this time around or in SA series) in County, Couple of County seasons are must to polish him to a World Class batsman...Pakistani Domestic is not good enough, it was not good enough for Javed, Inzi, MoYo, YK etc, they all were polished in County, unfortunately Babar needs that too... Pay him well enough so that he does not focus on T20, he is the biggest batting asset we have, we got to invest in him, built team around him... For once PCB invest in the best talent you got and develop him.

 

[Markhor]

I try to avoid these toxic threads as it seems there's no middle ground. Either you think Babar is some ATG in the making or a selfish batsman who plays for milestones.

This kind of binary thinking is a result of our rubbish cricket media who don't do any proper analysis beyond cliches like "he is selfish, he is fearless, he needs to play aggressively" etc so the fans jump on the same bandwagon. The reality is he is an excellent young batsman with a good technical foundation but still has someway to go to become an elite level batsman.

Despite Pakistan's horrible batting culture due to a substandard domestic system, Babar Azam was an NCA product groomed at an early age and by far the most polished young batsman we've produced as a result since the 1990s. Without him, we struggle to make competitive totals.

However by international standards, he's a level below the so called Fab Four of Kohli, Root, Williamson and Smith. That's mainly as he hasn't developed their ruthlessness and ability to close out matches. He's gotta cut out those soft dismissals - which is why he has a limited Test record so far. He is also a slow starter and like Root and Williamson, much more comfortable playing orthodox cricket and let others be more expansive.

I believe if we finally move on from the sainted seniors Hafeez, Malik and Sarfraz, and get a proper middle order in place then that'll take the pressure off Babar and allow him to play more freely instead of worrying about holding the innings together.

 

[warcry]

the most over-hyped player in pakistan's history is umar akmal

 

[goran]

It's hilarious to see some fans wanting him to be dropped. In a poor batting team like us , he is the best we have. He is miles ahead of any other current batsman in terms of ability and temperament. Just because he can't convert 50s to 100s, he should be dropped? We will struggle big time without him.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

First of all, Kane Williamson is not even among the top 10 ODI batsman of his time and Babar is even worse than him which shows how hyped he is when he is consistently compared with Kohli, Root, etc.

Second, which ATG batsman has Pakistan produced in the last 2 decades? Mohammad Yousuf was the last world class batsman from Pakistan who debuted in 1998!

Why are you using Kohli and Root as a metric? You will get fans of any country who try to compare their favourite players with ATGs, in that case every batsman who is not matching those guys in stats is overhyped.

Most people will see Babar for what he is; a technically correct batsman with great skill and could possibly find a spot in most world sides today. True he has yet to prove his finishing skills to be a match-winning ODI batsman, but he gets rightly criticised for that rather than overhyped.

Kane Williamson might not be the best batsman of his time, but I didn't realise that was the yardstick. He's NZ best batsman by some distance, and again, recognised by most as a world class batsman. Why would you want to diss a player of that calibre? You don't rate him yourself I take it?

 

[marlonbrowndo]

Played a crucial knock against South Africa. He will improve even more

 

[OmaIR1]

I say replace him with someone like fawad alam. what do you say?

I wouldn't replace him. He's just not as good as they say.

Fawad Alam is a good player being overlooked due to his perceived inability to hit sixes.

 

[Hasan123]

He's our best batter. Hopefully he can improve his strike rotation and find a way to get us over the line against top teams.

He did well yesterday until he got out. I think he should have just batted till the end as Haris was striking the ball well.

 

[andy0204]

He needs to be mentally strong.

 

[OmaIR1]

Look at the the batsmen around Root, Kohli and Williamson.

Now look at the batsmen around Babar.

When you are batting with Bairstow, Roy, Butler, Morgan and Stokes, fielders are farther back. They are under an onslaught. Easy to then play your own game.

When you are Babar, one wicket away from a total calamity, the mindset is entirely different. Rotate strike, hit four or preserve wicket?

Put him in England and watch his game go up another gear.

I disagree.

Players of caliber should perform regardless. Tendulkar of the 90s played to his potential around limited support and became a legend.

Claiming his inability to rotate the strike is because of the others around him is non sense.

 

[Syed1]

Poster after poster keeps missing the premise of the thread which was regarding his test performance (if you need proof go and check the OP). Babar's ODI performance and position has never really been in question. Therefore, it still holds true. But what can you do when people display a collective sense of stupidity

 

[babajee]

Must improve his strike rotation and batting till the end of the innings to go to the next level.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

I disagree.

Players of caliber should perform regardless. Tendulkar of the 90s played to his potential around limited support and became a legend.

Claiming his inability to rotate the strike is because of the others around him is non sense.

He may have become a legend but India didn't win any games then either - which is the job of the legend. That happened when he got good players around him - Ganguly, Sehwag etc.

Babar is no Tendulkar. He is a very good bat and should continue what he is doing. Stop being negative about him. Without him, Pakistan batting crumbles.

 

[OmaIR1]

He may have become a legend but India didn't win any games then either - which is the job of the legend. That happened when he got good players around him - Ganguly, Sehwag etc.

Babar is no Tendulkar. He is a very good bat and should continue what he is doing. Stop being negative about him. Without him, Pakistan batting crumbles.

With or without him Pakistani batting line up crumbles (India vs Pakistan is case in point).

My point is that he is overly hyped. His game heavily relies on boundaries and he has difficulty rotating the strike. Far from the greats in terms of skills.

 

[Hasan]

Simple answer - no. But this thread may be the silliest thread on PP.

 

[The_KING]

He is the next Mohammad Yousuf. Looks very good when he is batting and has all the talent in the world, but never really delivers when it really matters. Yousuf was the King of soft runs and so is Babar Azam.

 

[Syed1]

Simple answer - no. But this thread may be the silliest thread on PP.

Read OP first before talking

 

[Obaidd]

Not the MOST overhyped ever of course.

However, comparisons with Kohli are nauseating.

 

[marlonbrowndo]

He is the next Mohammad Yousuf. Looks very good when he is batting and has all the talent in the world, but never really delivers when it really matters. Yousuf was the King of soft runs and so is Babar Azam.

Yousuf is a toxic character but he won us an Asia cup and has scored runs in some crucial ODIs

 

[jonny darko]

No matter what the game situation demands, he will do anything to reach his personal milestone.

 

[observer1]

"Soft Runs" ?

That's a ridiculous statement imo.

Yousuf and Inzi saved our behinds time and time again in the middle order.

We've never looked comfortable chasing a score since these two left. Which is telling as they left a long, long time ago.

 

[Cric_lover4487]

He is best batsman i have seen in green shirt after Inzamam. He has hardly played 50 matches please be patient and give him time to learn and evolve. Kohli was not dynamic in his first 2 seasons. He has issues rotating strike and concentrating for longer periods. Both Kohli and Rohit were given a very long rope by Dhoni to grow into the players they are today. Unfortunately for Babar, he is forced to be the star player from day 1. There is no senior player who can absorb the pressure and give necessary space for Babar to grow at his own pace. Look how India settled Pant in test team. Kohli n co. took the pressure and gave him free hand to express himself. Indian management knows how to protect and nurture batting talent something i am afraid i cant say about Pakistan.

 

[Obaidd]

No matter what the game situation demands, he will do anything to reach his personal milestone.

You should watch his 90(58) against SA in a t20 earlier this year to change your mind. Even in the match against SA he got out trying to ‘accelerate’.

He did play a selfish innings against Eng in bilateral this year though when he considerably slowed down to reach his 100.

 

[pillionrider]

For someone who's not invested in Pakistan's fortunes, and thereby Babar's contributions or failures in the team cause:
That over of Boult vs Babar featured some elite level batting

 

[OmaIR1]

This is Babar's chance to silence some of the critics by staying at the crease until the end and guiding Pakistan home.

Sick and tired of his solid 50s and 60s.

 

[Hawkeye]

For someone who's not invested in Pakistan's fortunes, and thereby Babar's contributions or failures in the team cause:
That over of Boult vs Babar featured some elite level batting

You're from a country that understands batting. And when seeing batting talent, recognizes it.

We have the likes of [MENTION=147314]topspin[/MENTION] and [MENTION=138254]Syed1[/MENTION] who bad mouth Babar Azam in every thread, downplay his ability, talent, and consistent performances till now.

Babar is destined to be a great.

 

[topspin]

You're from a country that understands batting. And when seeing batting talent, recognizes it.

We have the likes of [MENTION=147314]topspin[/MENTION] and [MENTION=138254]Syed1[/MENTION] who bad mouth Babar Azam in every thread, downplay his ability, talent, and consistent performances till now.

Babar is destined to be a great.

No I haven't, stop lying. I just ridiculed you for claiming he's one of top 5 ODI batsmen in the world because he isn't.

 

[Sirris]

There have been many over hyped upcoming Pakistani batsmen. But Babar isn't one of them.

He proved he is the real deal.

 

[Hasan123]

Best bat since Moyo.

 

[marlonbrowndo]

This thread was always going to backfire. But it’s fine. Let’s just be happy

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

Lock the thread and throw away the key.

 

[AdamM97]

Babar Azam has the potential. He has the skills but looks timid. Finally a match winning century from the man himself.

 

[shaz619]

This type of criticism is disgraceful especially towards youngsters we have been trying to grow and develop, you'd think they deserve a bit of a long rope; what's even more weird is when these attacks continue despite the players doing well and every failure is overly criticised. But inshaAllah Babar is protected from the evil eyes of these people.

 

[Chief Destroyer]

Babar Azam has the potential. He has the skills but looks timid. Finally a match winning century from the man himself.

I don't see any timidity. How can such a young player be so successful at #3 from the get-go and be timid? Do you understand how much pressure a #3 has to absorb for any team let alone Pakistan who are historically prone to collapses. He is elite, mentally.

 

[Hitman]

Leave him alone and let him play his game.

 

[Bewal Express]

What a brilliant innings by Babar today. Intelligence is not a word we associate with our players but this had advanced intelligence on a Pisss poor wicket, an excellent technique, and a desire to win. A memorable innings

 

[Bewal Express]

Leave him alone and let him play his game.

Babar is Babar and we need to let him be.

 

[MenInG]

"Good thing about Babar Azam is that he has come through the ranks - he's played U16, U19 and also played plenty of cricket for Pakistan A also; He is doing a wonderful job for himself and Pakistan and growing in confidence and getting better; Babar Azam is probably one of the batsmen we have at the moment who can really go on and beat records of Javed Miandad, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan; He is the guy who can challenge their records" : Waqar Younis

 

[HappyWarsFan]

He's very good but he's not that good at tests cricket. So for me he is a little overhyped, until he can average 45+ in tests.

 

[zain7077]

No, he is the best young batsman in the world MA

 

[Mesozoic]

He's actually criminally underrated especially here on PP. Even when he plays a match winning innings, he gets flak from left and right. The sooner Pakistan fans and media realise that he's the only world class player in the team (Shaheen has the potential but he's not there yet) and stop putting undue pressure on him, the better .

 

[Joseph Gomes]

What a ridiculous thread. How is Babar overhyped when he's the only quality batsman in Pakistan team? Nobody is claiming he's Kohli or Smith except for a few trolls.

 

[Danyaalr01]

As soon as he scored his century vs NZ, everyone who criticised him went quite.

Some Pakistanis just don't give a chance to youngsters. Batsmen, especially top order batsmen take a few years of investment before the runs start coming. Smith, Williamson, Kohli and Root all went through this, so did Rohit.

 

[jiduguravindra]

Apart from test cricket, in odis he lacks that killer ability to take game away from the opposition..He has to develop that aura and controlling the game that opposition captain and bowlers fear of..

 

[Mainul]

Babar is world class and with time I hope he will take his game to next level to reach VK, Smith

 

[Mainul]

As soon as he scored his century vs NZ, everyone who criticised him went quite.

Some Pakistanis just don't give a chance to youngsters. Batsmen, especially top order batsmen take a few years of investment before the runs start coming. Smith, Williamson, Kohli and Root all went through this, so did Rohit.

Yes. Pakistan should include at least 2 promising batsmen of 20-22 years of age in playing eleven and nurture them .

 

[Danyaalr01]

Yes. Pakistan should include at least 2 promising batsmen of 20-22 years of age in playing eleven and nurture them .

There should at all times in all teams be a young 20 year old bastman that is invested in like Babar was. They might not have the same results that he has, but it is important to develop young batsmen and be patient with them, give them 3 years.

 

[Mainul]

There should at all times in all teams be a young 20 year old bastman that is invested in like Babar was. They might not have the same results that he has, but it is important to develop young batsmen and be patient with them, give them 3 years.

It is most important to identify the right talent. If you invest even a decade on batsmen like Shehzad , Asad, Azhar from their twenties the won't never be world class. Babar is a true talent . You have to find more. Pakistan don't have lots of talents like 80's or 90's. That's why an eagles eye is needed .

 

[Syed1]

What a ridiculous thread. How is Babar overhyped when he's the only quality batsman in Pakistan team? Nobody is claiming he's Kohli or Smith except for a few trolls.

The thread has always been about test cricket... gather a few brain cells and read the OP.


In LOI cricket he is well on his way to being our best ever batsman.

 

[Birdman]

Answer to that question would be Aamir. What a dud he turned out to be.

 

[Nasty Naz]

In the end, he'll go down as the best LOI batsmen in Pakistan.

In Tests? Who knows. He's been mostly mediocre with a few exceptional innings but consistency hasn't been there yet. I think he'll get there though but I doubt he reaches the heights of Inzi/Younis/Yousuf in Tests though. He's still pretty young so you never know... his prime years are coming up so if he happens to significantly improve and go berserk, he might.

 

[Savak]

In the end, he'll go down as the best LOI batsmen in Pakistan.

In Tests? Who knows. He's been mostly mediocre with a few exceptional innings but consistency hasn't been there yet. I think he'll get there though but I doubt he reaches the heights of Inzi/Younis/Yousuf in Tests though. He's still pretty young so you never know... his prime years are coming up so if he happens to significantly improve and go berserk, he might.

I felt he turned a corner against SA in SA.