Head coach of Multan Sultan, Andy Flower has praised Babar Azam for his brilliant performance with the bat. Azam had recently scored his career-best 159 at an average of 59 against England in the ODI’s.
He has also scored 118 runs in the three-match T20 series, which include a top score of 85, at an average of 39.33 and a strike-rate of 151.28.
Andy has also praised Babar for handling his responsibilities well. Azam is not only the captain of the team for the three formats, but also has the pressure to perform well as a batsman as he is one of the key players of the team who plays as an opener.
Read more: Babar Azam breaks PM Khan’s record in England, receives praise from India
Adding to the pressure is the constant comparison between Babar Azam and Virat Kohli, who also happens to be the captain of the Indian team and a key batsman for the squad.
Right now, both the players are in the top 10 of World Ranking in ODIs and T20. Babar holds the top position in ODIs and the second in T20s.
🇵🇰 Captain KING 👑Babar Azam Is Ahead of Virat Kohli in ICC Ranking of Both White Ball Formats 👑💖💪
If Pakistan's Captain Babar Azam Continues His form in West Indies No doubt he Will get back his No.1 Position from David Malan and will become the No.1 T20 Batsman again 👌🔥😍 pic.twitter.com/kFZCzZ0TpQ
— Cricket_World_Wide (@KhAnsari46) August 2, 2021
“The fact that he’s played so well, with the added responsibility of captaincy, reflect really well on him as a person. This shows that he can control his thoughts and his emotions and still perform brilliantly with a bat and lead from the front.” Flower said.
Andy Flowers on Muhammad Rizwan
Similarly, while talking about Muhammad Rizwan, Andy commented that Rizwan’s captaincy skills are commendable.
Rizwan has captained Multan Sultans in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) and played an instrumental role in leading them to their first-ever title win.
Read more: PSL champion Muhammad Rizwan: The ‘new sultan’ of Pakistan cricket
Rizwan has also recently made a world record, of the highest T20I runs by scoring 752 runs from batting in 14 innings in the ongoing calendar year.
Most T20I runs in a calendar year:
𝟳𝟰𝟵* – 🇵🇰 𝗠𝘂𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗱 𝗥𝗶𝘇𝘄𝗮𝗻, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟭.
748 – 🇮🇪 Paul Stirling, 2019.
729 – 🇮🇪 Kevin O'Brein, 2019.Mind you, we are only half way through the year. Who would have thought that when he opened vs NZ last year. #PAKvWI pic.twitter.com/oRasSTyz7j
— S A A D 🇵🇰 (@SaadSays22) July 31, 2021
Previously in the T20 series against England, he made 176 runs including two fifties, at an average of 88 and a strike rate of 138.58.
“He obviously led from the front as a player but also simultaneously captained well. Being decisive when he needed to be decisive and showing belief after we had a really tough start in Karachi. I thought he did an amazing job,”
Shahnawaz Dahani
When asked about the Pakistani seamer Shahnawaz Dahani, Andy commented that he has a heart of gold as he always wants the best for his team and teammates.
Dahani has also played for Multan Sultans in the 6th edition of PSL where he topped the charts as the highest wicket taker with 20 wickets in 11 games at an average of 17 and an economy rate of 8.42.
Read more: Shahnawaz Dahani addresses link-up rumours with Sarah Taylor
The 24-year-old is all set to make his Test debut in the forthcoming two-Test series against the West Indies being played in the Carribean from 12th August to 24th August.
Shahnawaz Dahani also celebrates his birthday today as he turns 24. Official page of Multan Sultans tweeted wishing him a very happy birthday.
A very Happy Birthday to our larger than life #Sultan @ShahnawazDahani. Keep shining 🌟 #SultansBirthday #HappyBirthday #Dahani pic.twitter.com/xsT7xWO6fL
— Multan Sultans (@MultanSultans) August 5, 2021