Under the shimmering floodlights and in front of a roaring partisan crowd, Virat Kohli unleashed his latest masterclass, blasting a 42-ball 70 to guide Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to a sensational 11-run win over Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Nasser Hussain hailed Pakistan's debutant batter Kamran Ghulam for his century during the second Test against Three Lions at Multa
Pakistan to field unchanged XI against India in Asia Cup
Pakistan batsman Babar Azam's sparkling form has earned him comparisons with Virat Kohli but the elegant right-hander says he has a long way to go before he can be considered the Indian skipper's equal. Both top-order batsmen score freely and play the cover drive particularly well. Babar averages above 45 in Tests and 50-plus in both One-Day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals, putting him in the top five of all three formats.
Babar Azam said that the partnership between Mohammed Rizwan and Mohammad Nawaz was the turning point of the match
Babar also made it clear he had no issues with the interim chief selector Shahid Afridi on selection of players and said he and the head coach were giving their input and outlining their plans to the selectors regularly and in meetings.
Pakistan skipper Babar Azam said the massive 238-run win over Nepal in the Asia Cup opener will give his side confidence.
Babar capitalised on an early reprieve to score a career-best 143 not out when bad light forced early stumps with Pakistan 109 ahead with seven wickets remaining.
Shinwari rattled the top order as he scalped three of the opening five wickets.
Focus firmly on match, India-Pakistan clash will be interesting: Kotak
Pakistan collapsed from 362-5 to 378 all out as Muthusamy finished with Test best figures of 6-117.
Saim Ayub and Khurram Shahzad received their debut call-ups to Pakistan's squad for the three-match Test series against Australia.
Imam was in a hurry to reach his ton and, attacking the bowling, got an inside edge to Senuran Muthusamy's left-arm spin and was snagged at short leg by Tony de Zorzi's sharp catch.
Noman collected a 10-wicket haul during Pakistan's 93-run triumph over South Africa in Lahore recently and moved up four places.
Pakistan mentor Matthew Hayden is backing struggling captain Babar Azam to produce something special in the knockout stages of the Twenty20 World Cup, starting in Wednesday's semi-final against New Zealand.
Former cricketer Basit Ali disclosed that Gary Kirsten was displeased with Mohammad Rizwan's appointment as Pakistan's white-ball captain
Babar Azam acknowledged that Sri Lanka outperformed his team
The kitty has become popular with viewers and has gone viral with one particular cheeky comment from Lahori Guy who tweeted: 'Black Cat contributed more in Karachi Stadium than Babar Azam.'
The 53-year-old said he had immense respect for some of the Indian players of his generation but never showed it on the field.
Former Pakistan captain blamed frequent changes in the team's management, coaches, and players for the chaotic situation.
'Agar chache ke puttar ne keh diya hai ki t-shirt chahiye Kohli ki, then do it after the game in the dressing room.'
India vice-captain Shubman Gill dethroned Pakistan's Babar Azam from the No. 1 spot in the ICC ODI Rankings for batters on the back of his strong showing against England in the recent home series.
Pakistan's Shan Masood is likely to be retained captain for the upcoming home Test series against England, while Babar Azam is also assured of keeping his white-ball captaincy when the team flies to Australia and South Africa later this year.
2009 champions Pakistan were stunned by debutants USA in the Super Over.
Tournament co-hosts India will be out to defend their Twenty20 World Cup title. The 10th edition of the 20-overs global showpiece event will run from February 7 to March 8.
Babar Azam's glorious unbeaten 102 kept Pakistan alive but Australia remained on course for victory in the second Test in Karachi on Tuesday.
'He is very special. I believe he is going to be one of the best that Pakistan have ever produced'
Tournament co-hosts India will be out to defend their Twenty20 World Cup title in familiar home conditions next month.
Babar Azam does not believe that the outcome of the much-anticipated India-Pakistan clash in World Cup on Saturday will have an impact on his captaincy.
Slamming the move of breaking the worldwide famous opening pair of Babar Azam and Mohammed Rizwan following the team's loss in the T20I series against New Zealand, former Pakistan cricketer and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Ramiz Raja asked the selectors what benefit they gained out of it.
'Unfortunately, we tend to crack under pressure and lose close matches as we have seen in recent games.'
Former captain Shahid Afridi has proposed couple of changes to the Pakistan playing eleven following the dramatic loss to India in the T20 World Cup
'I have also previously topped the T20I rankings, but the ultimate ambition and goal is to lead the Test rankings, which are the real testament and reward to a batsman's calibre, reputation and skills. I understand to achieve this objective, I will not only have to perform consistently, but more importantly, against the top sides.'
Pakistan skipper Babar Azam said the recent experience of playing in Sri Lankan conditions will give his side an edge over India.
Former fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar said Pakistan Babar Azam, who is a big fan of Virat Kohli, should learn to play like his "idol" and convert good starts into big knocks by adapting to match situations the way the Indian captain does.
PHOTOS from a memorable chase and a famous win...
Latif said India have superior spinners and based on current form, Rohit Sharma's men are favourites for a win on Sunday.
'They fired their chief selector, selection committee, changed the captain because they couldn't digest how Pakistan went ahead of them.'
Babar Azam was named captain of the Pakistan T20 team ahead of the Australia series in October last year, was recently handed the reins of ODI team as well.
Pakistan come into the main draw of the T20 World Cup with 10 wins in a row in the UAE and the 27-year-old said the mood in the camp is very positive.
