Babar Azam dreams of becoming No.1 batter in all three formats: Hopefully will be able to do it
India Today
Pakistan captain Babar Azam has declared his intention to become the world's No.1 batter in all three formats of the game.
Babar Azam has said, “it’s a dream” to become the No.1 ranked batter in all three formats and match Dinesh Karthik’s call that the Pakistan captain can create history.
Karthik feels Azam has it in him to become the world's No. 1 batter in all three formats, which will be a unique first in the annals of the game. Babar is currently the No.1 batter in the ICC ODI and T20I rankings, while he is a career-high No.5 in Tests behind Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Kane Williamson and Joe Root.
But Karthik, who was recently included in India's squad for the five-match T20I series against South Africa, is quite confident that the Pakistan captain will soon be topping the ICC Test batting charts as well.
"As a player it's a dream to become the No. 1 in all formats and, for that, you have to focus and put in hard work. It's not like if you are the top player in one or two formats, you go easy," Azam was quoted as saying by the ICC on Friday.
"If you are to become No.1 in all three, you have to keep yourself fit and on track. There is back-to-back cricket and the gap is less. For that, you need to be extra fit.
"It's something I am preparing for. It's going well in white-ball and hopefully, I will be able to do well in Tests too," added Azam.
Azam was speaking ahead of the rescheduled Pakistan and West Indies ODI series to be played on 8, 10 and 12 June. The three ODIs were postponed last December due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the West Indies camp following their T20I series.
