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Pakistan star batter Babar Azam asked reporters to stop calling him ‘King’, stating he isn’t one yet and prefers to see what people call him after retirement.
Babar Azam (Picture Credit: AFP)
Pakistan star batter Babar Azam requested reporters to stop addressing him as ‘King’ on Thursday. He said he was not a ‘King’ yet and would want to see what people would call him after he retired.
The nickname, given to him a couple of years ago and made popular on social media, has often come to haunt, with some ex-cricketers using it to taunt him in patches of bad form. It has been more prevalent in the last few months, as he has failed to score an international century since his 151 against Nepal in August 2023.
“Pehli baat toh ye King-Shing karna, bolna zara kam karein (Firstly, stop calling me a king),” Babar said. “I’m not a king yet. Let’s see what people call me when I retire. Opening is a new role for me, and I’ve taken on this responsibility as per the team’s needs,” he added.
Babar has been given the opening responsibility for the tri-series against South Africa and New Zealand and the upcoming 2025 Champions Trophy in Pakistan and the UAE. Usually a middle-order batter in 50-over cricket, he is filling in for the injured opener Saim Ayub.
The job didn’t get off to the best of starts in the tri-series as he got out for 10 against New Zealand and 23 against South Africa. New Zealand won the first match easily but against the Proteas, skipper Mohammad Rizwan and all-rounder Salman Agha’s centuries led the hosts to chase 353 with six wickets in hand.
“What I’ve done before is in the past. If I keep dwelling on previous performances, I won’t perform in the future. Every day is a new challenge with a new plan. Successfully chasing big totals like today boosts our confidence. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to finish the innings, but Rizwan and Salman played brilliantly today. Performances like these lift the team’s confidence,” Babar said.
Pakistan’s Champions Trophy campaign begins with the tournament opener against New Zealand in Lahore. They’ll then play other Group ‘A’ members, India and Bangladesh, once each with the aim to finish in the top-two teams and qualify for the semi finals.
