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Mohammed Babar Azam. Photo by BBC Urdu.

Top 10 Amazing Facts about Babar Azam

Babar Azam whose full name is Mohammed Babar Azam, is the captain of Pakistan national cricket team in all formats and an international cricketer by profession.

He was born on 15^th October, 1994 to a Punjabi family in Lahore in Pakistan.  He captains Karachi Kings in the Pakistan Super League and Central Punjab in the domestic cricket league.

Babar Azam, a right handed top-order batsman, is regarded as one of the finest batsmen in the world of contemporary cricket. 

Azam is in the top 5 rankings across all formats making him the only batsman in the world to achieve that fit.

As of 28^th June, 2022, he was ranked the number one batter in T20Is and in One-Day Internationals (ODIs). Azam is Pakistan’s second most successful T20I captain with 26 out of 41 wins.

Discussed here below are the top 10 amazing facts about Babar Azam.

1. Azam Hails from a Cricket Playing Lineage and Started Playing at A Young Age

Born on 15^th October 1994 to a Punjabi family in Lahore, Azam started playing cricket while still a young child.

He is the cousin of renown cricket players namely  Kamran Akmal, Umar Akmal and Adnan Akmal well known as the Akmal brothers. Due to this lineage Azam can be said to have important connections in the cricket world in Pakistan.

2. At 15 Years of Age Azam Scored 213 Runs in Four Only Matches

Azam was drafted in the under 19 cricket team representing Pakistan in cricket tri-series games held in 2009.

The tri-series tournament involved under 19 teams from Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.  Azam is said to have taken the tournament by storm while still 15 years of age.

He scored 213 runs in four matches which was at an average of 53.25 runs in every match which was simply amazing. It was while playing against Sri Lanka that he scored the highest score at 127 runs in the under 19 tri-series cricket games.

In the following 2010 under 19 cricket games, Azam scored 298 runs in 6 games which was an average of 59.60 runs per game during the period.

3. Babar Azam Became a Skipper at An Early Age

Babar Azam. Photo by Batting With Bimal.

Following Babar Azam’s outstanding performance at the tri-series games in 2009, he was appointed the skipper of the Under 19 ICC World Cup cricket team. The Pakistani team performed well during the games and reached the Super League stage.

The Under 19 team bowed out of the games after a narrow defeat by India Under 19 team who beat them by 1 run only.

During the games Azam lit up the tournament with a 75 score against Afghanistan Under 19. The match against Afghanistan was the first during the tournament and Azam emerged the star player.

Azam ended up as Pakistan’s leading run-scorer in the ICC Under 19 World Cup tournament having scored a total of 298 runs.

4. Babar Azam Hit 54 of 60 Balls on International Debut

Azam made his ODI International debut on 31^st May 2015 for Pakistan against Zimbabwe in Lahore. Azam hit 54 of just 60 balls after coming in to bat at number 4.

However, the match was abandoned due to rains and hence Azam did not have adequate opportunity to play through the entire time of the game

5. Azam Entered the Record Books Following His Performance Against West Indies in 2016

Babar Azam. Photo by Pakistan Cricket on Youtube.

Azam entered the record books following his herculean effort in defeating West Indies 3-0 in 2016. He scored 3 consecutive ODI centuries becoming the third Pakistani player and 7^th overall to achieve that feat.

Azam became the youngest player to score three consecutive ODI tons at 21 years of age. Azam scored the most runs by any batsman in a 3-match bilateral series after amassing 360 runs in 3 matches. On average he scored 120 runs in every match.

6. Azam Earned a Unique Record Following a UAE Tour

Cricket game. Photo by Tourism Victoria.

During a tour of the United Arab Emirates, Babar Azam added a unique record to his cricketing career.

In 3 match series, Azam scored 3 consecutive centuries emerging with scores of 120, 123 and 117 runs respectively

Azam scored his first 3 centuries in consecutive innings becoming the first batsman to score in that manner in Pakistan.

7. Azam on The Verge of Breaking Another Record in Cricket

Babar Azam. Photo by Cricket 99tv.

As at the year 2022, Azam will become the fastest player to complete 1000 runs in ODI history, if he scores another 114 runs in the next 2 innings. In 18 innings so far, Azam has scored 886 runs which is a record breaker in itself.

Players who have set records after having reached the coveted mark in 21 innings include Sir Viv Richards, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen and Quinton de Kock.

8. Babar Azam’s Role Model in Cricket is Abraham Benjamin de Villiers

Babar Azam idolizes South African batsman Abraham Benjamin de Villiers and his wish is to become like him.

Abraham Benjamin De Villiers is a former South African International Cricketer who was named as the ICC ODI Player of the Year three times in his 15-year international career.

AB de Villiers was regarded as one of the five Wisden cricketers of the decade as at 2019 and in the history of the sport he is regarded as one of the greatest cricketers.

9. At One Time Babar Azam Twisted His Ankle and Had to Be Carried Off the Field

In his T201 match for Pakistan at only 22 years of age, an incident that led to him being carried off the field took place. Off the fourth ball of 20th over of first innings, England’s Moeen hit the ball towards extra cover and while still in the air, Azam attempted to catch it.

However, instead of catching the ball, Azam twisted his ankle in the process which made it impossible for him to stand. Shoaib Malik, his team mate, carried him off the field and the incident caused much mirth in the dressing room when team mates assembled.

In spite of the incident, Pakistan won the game convincingly by nine wickets and hence the players had the last laugh.

10. Mohammed Hafeez Advised Azam on Cricket Playing

During a One-Day International (ODI) against England in Abu Dhabi in 2015, Azam disclosed that Hafeez advised him to play straight during cricket tournaments.

Azam’s friend Rameez Raja advised him to be keen to ensure he follows Hafeez’s advice.