On Thursday, star batter Babar Azam of Pakistan requested reporters to stop calling him ‘King.’ He said that he was not yet a ‘King’ and would like to wait and see what people would call him after he retired.
The nickname, handed to him a couple of years ago and popularized on social media, has often come to haunt him although some ex-cricketers use it to taunt him when in patches of bad form. Their taunts have got louder in the recent past given that he hasn’t hit an international century since the 151 he scored against Nepal in August 2023.
“The first thing is to stop calling me a king,” Babar said. “I’m not yet a king. Let’s see what people call me when I retire. Opening is a new role for me, and I’ve taken this responsibility based on team requirements,” he added.
Babar was given the opening responsibility in the upcoming tri-series against South Africa and New Zealand and in the Champions Trophy 2025, which will be played in Pakistan and the UAE. He has taken on this role in place of the injured opener, Saim Ayub, in the 50-over format, in which he usually plays as a middle-order batter.
It did not get off to the best of starts in the tri-series with scores of 10 against New Zealand and 23 against South Africa. New Zealand won the first match easily, but against the Proteas, centuries from skipper Mohammad Rizwan and all-rounder Salman Agha helped the hosts chase down 353 with six wickets to spare.
“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.
