55 Test matches, Babar has scored 3,997 runs at an average of 43.92. However, he has not scored a Test half-century since 2022, and there has been a decline in his form over the past year, when he was made captain and then resigned from the post after Pakistan’s group-stage exit in the T20 World Cup in June this year.
Talking about Babar’s recent form, Raja feels that the former captain has to show that he has the capability of a legendary Vivian Richards. Raja said on his YouTube channel, “I think Babar has a lot to achieve in Test cricket. He plays very well in white-ball formats, his average is over 50 in both formats (T20 and ODI)…Babar Azam has a lot of capability.”
Raja said, “Now he has to prove to the world that he is a Vivian Richards. The bigger the match, the bigger the innings Richards will play.” Meanwhile, Babar will try to make a strong claim in the Test format with a great performance in the white-ball series against Australia next month. He was selected in both ODI and T20 teams for the tour.
This will be Pakistan’s first ODI after the 2023 World Cup, where they failed to qualify for the semi-finals under Babar’s captaincy and finished fifth. The right-handed batsman has consistently received the ICC ODI Cricketer of the Year award in 2021 and 2022 and is currently top-ranked in the ICC ODI batsmen’s rankings. His performance on this tour will decide his Test future, as Pakistan has to tour South Africa and play five Tests in the West Indies.