Virat mere dil ke bohot karib hai lekin.... Saqlain Mushtaq weighs in on the debate between the two greats

Right after Babar Azam made his claim to fame with consistent performances across all three formats, comparisons have been made to India's Virat Kohli. Watching Kohli ace a classic cover drive is a visual treat for every cricket fan. Labelled as one of the best batters to play the shot, he is often likened to Babar, who has also got an elegant cover drive in his arsenal. They are often pitted against each other

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Former Pakistan cricketer and current head coach Saqlain Mushtaq gave his verdict on the two batters while speaking in an interaction. When he was asked to name his pick, he chose Babar but passed on a special message to Kohli. “Definitely Babar kahunga... but Virat mere dil ke bohot karib hai (I will definitely pick Babar, but Virat is close to my heart)” he said.

Sri Lanka's legendary cricketer Sanath Jayasuriya also weighed in on the debate about the two prolific cricketers. “I like Virat Kohli. He is my favourite player and also my son's favourite player too," he said.

Virat Kohli recently scored his 71st hundred after a gap of 1021 days and the monkey was finally off his back. Before the T20 Asia Cup, Babar took social media by storm with his heartfelt tweet for Kohli, who witnessed an extended lean patch in world cricket. He didn't manage an international ton since November 2019 before touching the three-figure mark against Afghanistan on Thursday.

"I was a bit shocked because this was the format I least expected a century to come in any time soon, but it's all God's blessings," the 33-year-old said after scoring the elusive 71st hundred.

"I have been working hard and this was just a moment which was very special for me and the team as well. "What actually surprised me was my 60s became failures, which was quite shocking for me. I was batting pretty well and contributing, but it didn't seem to be good enough."