Babar Azam led from the from against West Indies in the first ODI on Wednesday in Multan. It was Babar whose 103 off 107 balls proved to be the difference in the end as the hosts won the game by five wickets. With his 17th ODI ton, Babar broke a Virat Kohli record. Prior to Wednesday, Kohli held the record for the fastest 1000 runs as a captain in ODIs. The ex-Indian skipper had reached the milestone in 17 outings. Babar has now bettered Kohli as he has breached that feat in merely 13 knocks as captain.
The 27-year-old also hit his second hat-trick of centuries in ODIs – a feat only held by him. He had hit two centuries against Australia prior to Wednesday’s ODI versus West Indies. His first hat-trick of ODI centuries came way back in 2016 against West Indies.
After the win, Babar also gave away his man of the match award to Khushdil Shah who hit an important 41* off 23 balls to take Pakistan over the line in the final over.
“I always try to continue my game and work on my strengths. There was a little bit of a problem during the calling when I was batting with Imam. But it got better as the partnership moved on. The wicket was a little double-paced and wasn’t that easy. There was heat but that is not an excuse. Credit to the bowlers. Shadab came back and did well. The standards he sets on the field is brilliant as well. Cricket is changing. We have to plan and play with a lot of intensity,” Babar said at the post-match presentation.
