PAK vs ENG: Vaughan, Hussain laud Azam after multiple milestones

Former England captain Michael Vaughan has made a bold claim about Pakistan skipper Babar Azam after the latter made a century in the ongoing first Test against England in Rawalpindi on Saturday.

Taking to Twitter, Vaughan lauded Azam and called him the best batter in the world.

The prolific Pakistan batter reached his ton in the second session of day three, with the help of 14 fours and a six. Azam cracked a boundary towards cover off opposition skipper Ben Stokes to reach his eighth century off 126 balls.

Azam upped the tempo after Pakistan lost centurions Shafique (114), Haq (121) and Azhar Ali (27) before lunch.

With a crowd of around 14,000 chanting "Babar, Babar", the Pakistan skipper responded by taking off his helmet and raising his bat in acknowledgement.

During the innings, Azam also reached 1,000 Test runs on home soil at an impressive average of 91.

The Pakistan captain also became the player with most hundreds, seven, in international cricket during 2022.

This was Azam’s 11th century as captain, which is the most by any Pakistan player in international cricket. Legendary batter Inzamam-ul-Haq is in second place with nine tons.

The Lahore-born was finally dismissed after he chopped one in the air to point and was caught by Jack Leach on the bowling of Will Jacks. He scored 136 runs in 168 balls.

Azam’s batting, especially his cover drive, also impressed former England captain Nasser Hussain, who is on commentary duties during the series.

"If you're a young boy or girl and you want to learn a cover drive, just watch this [shot by Babar Azam," said Hussain.

Before the Test match, England batter Joe Root also lavished praise on Azam while speaking to Geo News in an exclusive interview.

“He [Babar Azam] has done it across formats for a number of years now, his record across the world in Test cricket has been pretty consistent. And he's one of those players that when he's batting you sit and watch. I think, he's going to go from strength to strength. I don't think he's peaked just yet. I think there's more to come and we're going to have to play really well to keep him quiet,” said Root.

The three-match Test series is England´s first in Pakistan for 17 years, having declined to tour in the interim because of security fears.

The second Test moves to Multan starting on Friday, December 9, and the final Test of the tour will take place in Karachi, commencing on Saturday, December 17.