England spinner reveals pick between Virat Kohli, Babar Azam’s cover drive

England leg-spinner Adil Rashid has chosen former Pakistan captain and star batter Babar Azam over Indian cricketing icon Virat Kohli when it comes to playing the most aesthetically pleasing cover drive.

Speaking on the popular podcast Beard Before Wicket, Rashid and fellow England international Moeen Ali were asked a fan-favourite question: who possesses the more elegant cover drive—Babar or Kohli?

Moeen cleverly redirected the question to Rashid, who has bowled extensively to both players at the international level. The veteran spinner, after a brief pause, offered his take.

“I think Babar’s cover drive,” Rashid said, before adding, “but otherwise, Kohli’s straight drive and his whip are something else.”

Before Rashid responded, Moeen jokingly remarked, “He’s a big fan of Babar, you know,” prompting Rashid to playfully point out “cover drive,” suggesting his admiration was more for the shot than the player.

Moeen later offered his own opinion, giving the edge to Kohli's cover drive.

Interestingly, this wasn’t the first time Rashid had leaned toward Babar. 

Back in 2020, during an interview with At the Crease TV, the leg-spinner also picked Babar over Kohli as the better batsman, citing the Pakistani’s superior form at the time.

“It is a tough one that. So if you go on current form, I think I got to go with Azam. That’s current form I’m talking about. I picked Azam because he is in better form but they both are world-class players anyway,” Rashid had said.

For the unversed, Babar—who led Pakistan in three consecutive ICC Men’s T20 World Cups (2021, 2022, and 2024)—last featured in a T20I in December 2023. 

Since then, he has been sidelined, missing the home series against New Zealand in March and the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh, which began on May 28 in Lahore, and he is still not part of the plans for the upcoming major T20I tours.

The right-handed batter had faced criticism over his recent dip in T20I form, with his last half-century coming in May 2023—a 75-run knock against Ireland. 

He has played 128 T20Is for Pakistan, amassing 4,223 runs at an average of 39.83, including three centuries and 36 fifties.