Shoaib Akhtar slams Babar Azam, calls him fraud after loss against India

Former Pakistan gun fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has lashed out at Babar Azam after the Men in Green suffered a six-wicket loss at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai on Sunday. Azam got off to a decent start after Mohammad Rizwan decided to bat first.

However, the right-hander was dismissed by Hardik Pandya scoring only 23 runs as he was caught behind by KL Rahul and thus could not convert his start. On the other hand, Virat Kohli scored a match-winning knock of 100 runs, which was his 51st ODI century.

Meanwhile, Virat Kohli and Babar Azam have often been compared with each other but Akhtar said the former is miles ahead of the latter. Akhtar noted that Kohli is chasing former Indian batter Sachin Tendulkar’s legacy whereas Babar Azam has chosen the wrong heroes.

“We always compare Babar Azam to Virat Kohli. Now tell me who is hero of Virat Kohli? Sachin Tendulkar and he has scored 100 centuries and Virat is chasing his legacy. Who is Babar Azam’s hero? Tuk tuk (Without naming any cricketer,” Akhtar said on the show ‘Game On Hai’.

“You have picked the wrong heroes. Your thought process is wrong. You were a fraud from the beginning. I would not even wish to talk about Pakistan cricket team. I am only dong this because I am getting paid,” he said.

Akhtar showered praise on Virat Kohli for playing a match-winning knock under pressure in a high-octane clash.

“We have seen this in the past. When you tell Virat Kohli that he has to play against Pakistan, he will score a century. Hats off to him, he’s like a superstar! He’s a white ball run chaser! Modern-day great! No doubt about him. I’m very happy for him. He deserves all the praise,” he said in the same discussion.

Kohli added 114 runs with Shreyas Iyer and played a key role in India’s win. 

India will next take on New Zealand at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai on 2nd March.