Babar Azam is regarded as one of the best modern-day players and is revered for his copybook batting and insane consistency. As the backbone of the Pakistan Men’s Cricket team, he has earned a name for himself in all forms of cricket. Currently, he is the top-ranked batter in ODI and raked third both in T20Is and Tests. His batting prowess transcends formats. His batting style and ability to score runs have earned him global acclamation. Besides his batting talent, Babar has proved to be an excellent leader for the team. He is the most successful T20I captain for Pakistan who elevated his team to NO.1 in the ICC rankings. He has captained different sides in league/franchise cricket including Peshawar Zalmi in PSL (Pakistan Super League). Babar’s rise to prominence is not only about personal accomplishments but is the tale of grit, resilience, leadership, and commitment to excellence. Babar continues to shine in cricket. Cricketbuzztoday will guide you to know more about Babar’s story.

 

Early Life And Schooling

Babar Azam was born on 15th October 1994 in Lahore, Pakistan. He has a sister Fariya Azam, and two brothers Safeer Azam and Faisal Azam. His father is Azam Siddique who himself was a club cricketer.

His height is 5 ft 11 (180 cm). Babar played different local games with his peers including cricket, Gully Dhanda, hide and seek, etc. Babar attended Crescent Model School in Lahore where he balanced his studies with a passion
for cricket.

Passion For Cricket

Babar Azam had a love for playing cricket from a very young age. His father helped him pursue his passion for cricket. Watching his older cousins, Kamran Akmal, and Umar Akmal play club cricket and for the Pakistan national team made him more determined to pursue his dream vigorously. 

His father would take him to the cricket academy on his old bike daily. Babar Azam was in the stadium, as a ball boy, in the home series of the Pakistan cricket team played between 2006 and 2008. 

Babar’s First Coach

Babar Azam received his initial coaching from Rana Sadiq who molded his technique and taught him how to play cricket at a higher level.

Professional Life

As a young cricketer, he was technically correct and pleasing to the eyes. He was picked in a camp for the U-15 World Championship 2008. Babar was the second-highest run-getter in the U-15 championship.

 

He scored 436 in 7 innings at an average of 62.28. Kraigg Braithwaite was the highest scorer of the tournament with 538 runs. Babar clads shirt no. 56 and has the nickname  ‘Bobby’.

 

U-19 World Cup Performance

Babar Azam In Domestic Cricket

Quaide Azam Trophy

After a brilliant performance in the U-19 World Cup in 2010, he was picked up by Zarai Taraqiati Bank (ZTBL) in the domestic circuit for the season 2010-2011. In his early domestic career, Babar played as an emerging player for the ZTBL and Islamabad Leopards. 

Afterward, he played for the State Bank OF Pakistan Cricket Team and Sui Southern Company Cricket Team in the Quaid-e-Azam trophy. In September 2019, Babar became captain of the newly formed side ‘Central Punjab’.

His team eventually won the National T20 Cup. In the Season 2020-21 he was retained as captain of the C.P. (Central Punjab). In the same season, he became the fastest player in the history of domestic cricket, in a season, in Pakistan to score 1000 runs.

It took him only 27 innings. In the season 2021-22, he became the fastest batter (domestic and international) to score 7000 runs in T20 cricket. He scored it in 187 innings. 

 

Team	Season
Zarai Taraqiati Bank	2010/11–2013/14
Islamabad Leopards	2012/13–2014/15
State Bank of Pakistan	2014/15
Sui Southern Gas Corporation	2015/16–2017/18
Central Punjab	2019-2023

Source: www.espncricinfo.com

• ·Pakistan Super League (PSL)

 

Team	Season
Islamabad United	2016
Karachi kings	2017-2022
Peshawar Zalmi	2023-Present

Source:www.pcb.com.pk 

 

Babar Azam’s Performance In PSL

So far, Babar Azam has played 90 matches in PSL.His stats show why he is one of the best players in T20 cricket. Below is the breakdown of his PSL career.

 

Matches	Runs	Average	Highest Score	Centuries	Catches
90	3504	45.50	115	2	47

Source: www.espncricinfo.com

 

PSL Career Highlights

 

• In 2017, scored 291 runs finishing second-highest scorer of the tournament.
• For the season 2018, he was the third-highest scorer of the tournament.
• Highest scorer in 2020, scoring 473 runs at an average of 59.12. And led his team to victory.
• In PSL 2021, he scored 554 runs at an average of 69.25.
• In PSL 2024, Babar scored 569 runs at an average of 56.90.

International Franchise/ League Cricket

 

Babar Azam is a quality player which is why he is the 3rd ranked batter in T20 cricket. He has played in different
international leagues including;

 

S.No	Team	League	Season
1	Guyana Amazon Warriors	Caribbean  Premier League (CBL)	2017
2	Sylhet Sixers	Bangladesh Premier League (BPL)	2017
3	Somerset	T20 Blast County Cricket	2019
4	Rangpur Riders	Bangladesh Premier League (BPL)	2024

Source: Wikipedia

 

He was signed for the Rangpur Rider in BPL 2016. but due to national duty, he didn’t participate. Somerset signed Babar for the 2019 T20 Blast County Cricket. He scored 578 runs in 13 matches at an average of 52.54 per innings.

 

In the tournament, he scored 4 half-centuries and 1 century. He rejoined Somerset for the T20 Blast tournament 2020 besides two first-class matches. On 16th September 2020 in a match against Glamorgan, he scored 114 not out off 62 balls thus completing 5,000 runs in T20s.

 

The milestone made him the third fastest in the world and the fastest Asian in terms of innings to score 5,000 runs. He scored 238 runs in 7 innings for Somerset at
an average of 36.33. He was the second-highest run-getter for his team in the
tournament.

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Humble Beginning In ODIs

Babar’s rise to prominence, unfortunately, was in an era where there was no international cricket in Pakistan.

On the back of some incredible performances in U-19 World Cups and then topping it with impeccable performances in domestic cricket, he earned himself a place in Pakistan’s ODI squad for the home series in 2015. 

 

He played his debut match on 31st May 2015 and scored 54 off 60 balls. His debut performance booked him a place in the ODI and test squad for the away series against Sri Lanka. He didn’t play any test matches on the tour
however, he only scored 37 runs in the two ODIs.

 

In September 2015 he was made part of the squad for the ODI series against Zimbabwe in Zimbabwe. For the home series against England in 2015-16, Babar was retained in the ODI squad. He scored 62 not out in the first match of the 4-match series and was pivotal in the team’s victory. Overall, he finished the series with 139 runs at an average of 46.33.

 

Pakistan toured New Zealand in January 2016. Babar finished the 2 ODIs series with 145 series at an average of 72.50 runs per over. 

 

In July 2016, Pakistan toured England for the second time in the same year, for 5 ODIs series. Babar could only score 122 runs in 5 matches.

 

RiseTo Form And Fame 

 

Babar was named in the squad for the 2016 home series against the West Indies. He smashed the West Indian bowlers to all parts of the ground and scored his maiden century in international ODIs. He scored
120 off 131 balls.

 

The stylish right-hander scored back-to-back centuries in the next two ODIs breaking the record for most runs in a three-match ODI series by a Pakistani. He scored 360 runs in the series. 

 

In 2016 Babar Azam was Pakistan’s highest run scorer in ODIs and T20Is. He scored 872 in ODIs and 352 in T20Is. 

Babar joined the elite club of joint fastest to 1000 ODI runs with the likes of Viv Richards, Quinton De Kock,
and 4 others on 19th January 2017 against Australia.

 

His record was superseded by Fakhar Zaman who scored 1000 ODI runs in 18 innings. Fakhar still holds the
record. 

 

Azam scored a century in the 5th ODI against Australia becoming the second batter after Zaheer Abbas in
1981, to score a century in Australia. Babar stormed his way into the top 10 batter’s ranking in ODI cricket. 

 

In the Champions Trophy 2017 final, Babar scored a crucial 46 off 52 balls against India. After CT 2017, ICC sent the World XI team to Pakistan for three T20Is. 

 

Azam was the highest scorer of the series with 179 runs. He also won his first Player of the Match award in the
1st T20I against World XI.

 

In the ODI series against Sri Lanka in September 2017, he became the fastest batter to 7 ODI centuries, and the first ever in cricket history to score five consecutive centuries in one country. 

 

In 2017, he was awarded Pakistan’s ODI Player of the Year award by the PCB. Pakistan’s tour to New Zealand in 2018 was a nightmare for Babar as he managed to score only 31 runs in 5 innings at a poor average of 6.2.

 

Pakistan was whitewashed in the series. However, Babar bounced back in T20Is helping his team win the series 2-1. He was the leading run-scorer of the tournament with 109 runs.

 

After the series he rose to the no.1 T20 batter in the ICC rankings but for a short period, dropping to no.3.

The star batter regained top ranking in T20Is after the West Indies tour to Pakistan in 2018. He scored 165 runs in the series at an average of 82.50.

 

In May 2018 in a series against England, Babar suffered a broken forearm injury while ducking to a bouncer from Ben Stokes.

 

He made a comeback for the 5 ODI Series against Zimbabwe. He scored 184 runs in 4 matches. In September he played his first Asia Cup. It wasn’t a good outing for the classy batter as he managed to score only 156 runs in 5 matches. The PCB announced Babar as captain of the ODI side in May 2020.

Performance In the 2019 World Cup

Babar was named in the squad for the 2019 World Cup. The ICC named him among Five exciting talents making their World Cup debut.

In the match against New Zealand on 26th June, Babar became the fastest Pakistani batter to score 3000 runs. It took Babar 68 innings.

 

He also scored his tenth century in the same match. He scored 474 runs in 8 innings of the World Cup
breaking Javed Miandad’s record of most runs in a World Cup.

 

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Test Performances And Leadership Roles

Based on consistent performances in white ball cricket, he was named vice-captain of the national side in September 2019 before the series against Sri Lanka

.

He scored his 11th century in the series and became the first fastest Pakistani player to reach 10,000 ODI runs in terms of innings.

 

In October 2019, PCB announced Babar as the captain of Pakistan’s T20 team for the Australia series. Babar was impressive during his first-ever series in Australia.

 

He scored his first century but missed consecutive centuries getting out on 97. Overall, the star performer scored 210 runs at an average of 52.50.

 

On 13^th October 2016, Babar made his international test debut for Pakistan against the West Indies. He scored 69 in
his first innings becoming the first player to score 50 on debut in a day-night test match.

 

In December 2019, the Sri Lanka Cricket team came to Pakistan for a test series marking a return of test cricket in Pakistan.

 

Babar scored a century in the first test. In the second test, he scored 60 and 100 in the first and second innings
respectively. 

 

In January 2020 Bangladesh visited Pakistan for a T20I series. Babar was to play, as captain, against the visitor. Babar won the series for his side. He was also the player of the series in a 2-0 win.

 

In 2020, Pakistan toured England. In the first innings of the first test, he scored 69 not out taking his team out of trouble. 

 

In the third test, he completed 2000 runs of his career in 29 tests. He scored 195 runs in the series with a 48.75 average. 

 

In the T20i series in 2020 in England, he completed 1500 runs in 39 innings becoming the joint fastest to achieve the milestone. The series ended in a 1-1 draw. 

 

The ICC announced fresh rankings on 8th September 2020 in which Babar Azam fell to second spot after being atop for 22 months. 

 

In the home series against Zimbabwe, he led the ODI team for the first time in a 50-over format. Pakistan stood victorious with 2-1. Babar was declared man of the series scoring 221 runs.

 

In the T20i Series against Zimbabwe, he scored 82 runs and became the first batter ever to score more than
1000 runs in T20 cricket for consecutive years

. 

On 26th December 2020 Babar Azam, batting against New Zealand in a test match at National Stadium Karachi,
broke Muhammad Yousaf’s record for most runs by a Pakistani player in a calendar year in all formats. In 44 matches he scored 2584 runs while Muhammad Yousaf scored 2435 in 33 matches.  

 

Recently in the West Indies Vs England Series 2024, Harry Brooks and Joe Root batted magnificently. The duo climbed up the ICC Test Batters’ ranking. Babar Azam has dropped to no. 4 while Root and Brooks have jumped up to no.2 and no.3 respectively.

Babar Azam Moves UP In ICC Ranking 2024 

Babar Azam has been heavily criticized recently for his poor performances. But still, he has improved his ranking and is now ranked 11th with 712 ratings in the ICC Test ranking 2024.

 NO.1 ODI Batter

 

In the ODI series against South Africa in April 2021, Babar became the quickest batter to score the 13th
ODI century in 76 innings.

 

Previously, Hashim Amla was the quickest with 83 innings. At the end of the series, ICC issued ODI batting
rankings with Babar crowned as the No.1 ODI batter dethroning Virat Kohli. 

 

Highest T20 Partnership ForPakistan

On 22nd September 2022 playing against England, Babar and Muhammad Rizwan made a record partnership of
203*. It is the highest for Pakistan and 6^th highest overall for the 1^st wicket.

 

On 14^th April 2021, Babar and Rizwan scored a partnership of 197 runs against South Africa. Babar scored his maiden T20i century in the same match.

Fastest To 2000 Runs In T20s

 

In the 3rd T20i against Zimbabwe on 25^th April 2021, Babar became the fastest batter (52innings) to score 2000 runs.

 

Captain For The ICC T20 World Cup 2021 

 

Babar was announced as Captain, September 2021, of Pakistan’s T2O team for the ICC T20 World Cup 2021. He regained his No. 1 Spot in the ICC rankings. Babar led his team to the semi-final but unfortunately lost to Australia.

 

Australia toured Pakistan after 24 years, in March 2022. In the 2nd Innings of the second test match, Babar scored 196 runs which is a record for the most runs by a captain in the fourth innings. 

 

In the ODI series, he completed 4,000 runs becoming the second fastest overall and the fastest Asian to achieve this feat. It took him 82 innings.

 

In the third ODI Babar became the fastest batter (83 innings) to score his fifteenth century. Pakistan registered their highest successful run chase by chasing 348 runs.

 

Babar helped Pakistan win the series 2-1. It was the first time after 2002 that Pakistan won an ODI series
against Australia. 

 

In the T20I series against New Zealand in April 2023, Babar played his 100th T20I. He became the third
Pakistani player to do so.

 

The prolific cover driver scored his third T20I century on 15 April 2023, becoming the first captain to
score three T20I centuries. 

 

In the 4th ODI of the ODI series against New Zealand on 5th May 2023, Babar became the fastest (97 innings) to
5000 runs in ODIs.

 

A century in the same match made him the fastest to score 18th ODI century. The win against the Kiwis in the 4th
ODI made Pakistan the no.1 ranked team in the ICC ranking after 33 years. 

 

After a disappointing performance in the 2023 ODI World Cup, Babar resigned from all forms of captaincy. However, he was reappointed Captain of the ODI side on 31st March 2024.  

 

Babar went into the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup as a captain but his performance was not good. Pakistan lost to the
U.S. which was playing its first World Cup.

 

Afterwards, Pakistan lost to India. He became the highest scorer in T20Is in the match against the U.S. in
T20 World Cup 2024.

 

Although, matches against Canada and Ireland were won but not comprehensively. Hence, Pakistan was
knocked out in the first round of the T20 World Cup. 

 

 

Babar Azam Net Worth In 2024

 

Babar is considered one of the Modern Day Greats in Cricket. He is paid handsome money. His estimated net worth
in 2024 is around $5 million.

 

Many Cricket analysts believe that he will break all the records in World Cricket and go down in cricket annals as one of the best cricketers ever.

 

Babar Azam Salary In PCB Central Contract

 

Babar is in the ‘A’ category of the PCB Central Contract for the season 2023/24. Two other players in Category ‘A’ are Muhammad Rizwan and Shaheen Shah Afridi.

 

Category ‘A’ players get a $10,795 salary a month after their salaries were enhanced by 200 percent. In addition to their monthly salary, the players are given $438 for a test, $1459 for a T20I, and $2247 for an ODI.

 

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PSL Salary Of Babar Azam

In the first edition of PSL in 2016, Babar Azam was in the Silver Category worth $25,000. In the 2^nd edition of the PSL in 2017 he jumped up to the Gold category getting $50,000. 

 

In 2018 he was picked in the Diamond category earning Babar $70,000. In PSL 2024, Babar was picked
up in the Platinum category, the top category, by Peshawar Zalmi fetching him $104,866.

 

Brand Endorsement

Babar Azam has 5.3M followers on Instagram (@babarazam) and more than 5.1M followers on Twitter (@babarazam258) which makes him lucrative for the brands.

 

Babar Azam has been modeling for many companies including Oppo, Head & Shoulder, Pepsi, etc earning him millions of rupees a year.

Personal Life Of Babar Azam

Babar Azam is still unmarried but in 2021 a woman named Hamiza Mukhtar, claiming to be Babar’s wife, filed a
complaint against him in the Federal Investigation Agency.

 

She alleged that Babar impregnated him and now doesn’t own their marriage. She further told FIA that Babar is pressurizing her through threatening phone calls and messages to take the case back.

 

An investigation was carried out and it was found that one of the Phone Sims was registered in the name of a
person named Muhammad Babar.

 

However, Hamiza Mukhtar willfully took the case back stating that some of her friends tricked her into defaming
Babar to gain fame.

 

She apologized to the court and investigating agency and stated that she would be liable for punishment if she made such a statement in the future.

 

Muhammad Asif’s Talk On Babar Azam

 

Former Pakistani pacer had a lot to say about Babar Azam in a talk with a local channel in America. He said that he can bowl a maiden over to Babar in T2Os even today because he can’t put the good balls away.

 

Asif said that Babar cannot improvise in T20s which is the need of modern T2O cricket.  He added that Babar plays a lot of dot balls which creates pressure on his opening partner Muhammad Rizwan.

 

Asif revealed that he picked Babar in trials for the ZTBL team after Babar played two balls in the nets. He said that we don’t have a choice right now but to retain Babar as Captain. Asif scathed Shahid Afridi that, he was trying to make Shaheen Captain.  

 

Participation In The Global T20 League Canada 2024

 

Babar is set to play for Vancouver kings in Global T20 League Canada 2024. The knights won the tournament in 2018 and were runners-up in 2019. 

 

Apart from Babar other Pakistani player including Muhammad Amir, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Asif Ali, and Muhammad Rizwan will also feature in the tournament.  

 

Muhammad Amir and Muhammad Rizwan are going to be part of the Vancouver kings. The tournament might help Babar regain his touch that was not seen in the failed T20 World Cup 2024 for Pakistan Team.

 

Babar Azam’s Records

•  Third-fastest Pakistani scoring 1000 runs (27 innings) in ODIs.
• Joint fastest Pakistani to score 2000 runs (45 innings) in ODIs.
•  Second fastest Asian to score 3000 (68 innings) runs in ODIs.
•  Fastest ever to score 5000 runs (97 innings)
• The only player to score five consecutive centuries in ODIs in a single country (U.A.E)
• The faster batter to 7^th,13^th, 14^th, 15^th, 16^th, 17^th, 18^th ODI centuries.
• The only batter to score 3 consecutive centuries twice.
• The fastest captain to get to 1000 ODI runs (13 innings)
• Highest runs, 303, in the 2021 T20 World Cup.
• Most runs by a Pakistani batter, 474 runs, in the 2019 ODI World Cup.
• First Pakistani captain to beat India in a World Cup match.
• First Pakistani Cricketer to win the ICC ODI Cricketer of the Year. He achieved this feat twice.
• One of the three Pakistanis to score a century in all forms of cricket.
• The only player with 25 scores of fifty-plus in ODIs.

Award	Year
The ICC Men’s ODI Team of the Year  PCB’s ODI Cricketer of the Year	2017
PCB’s T20I Cricketer of the Year	2017
ICC Men’s ODI Team of the Year	2019
PSL Player of the Tournament	2020
ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Year  Captain of ICC Men’s T20I Team of the Year Captain of the ICC Men’s ODI Team of the Year  ICC Player of the Month for April PCB’s ODI Cricketer of the Year	2021
ICC Cricketer of the Year ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Year  Captain of the ICC Men’s ODI Team of the Year Named in the ICC Men’s Test Team of the Year Winner of ICC Player of the Month for March	2022
Recipient of the Nishan-E-Imtiaz(third-highest civil award in Pakistan)	2023

Source: Wikipedia

 Babar Azam’s Centuries List Against Teams

Opponent Team	ODIs	T20Is	Tests
Australia	3	0	2
Bangladesh	0	0	1
England	2	1	1
India	0	0	0
Nepal	1	0	0
New Zealand	2	1	2
South Africa	1	1	0
Sri Lanka	3	0	3
West Indies	5	0	0
Zimbabwe	2	0	0
Total	19	3	9

Source: Wikipedia

Babar Azam has been growing from strength to strength since the start of international career. His contemporaries are Virat Kohli, Joe Root, Steve Smith, Kane Williamson, etc who are considered some of the best modern-day cricketers. He is an asset for Cricket in general and Pakistan Team in particular. Babar doesn’t have a prolonged gray patch in his career yet. Looking at his form and temperament it can be said that he will go a long way in international cricket.

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