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Ahead of the Champions Trophy, Pakistan's premier batter Babar Azam received his International Cricket Council (ICC) Men's T20I Team of the Year for 2024 cap.
Last month, the 31-year-old prolific batter was named in the star-studded ICC T20I Team of the Year 2024 for his blistering run in the format. On the eve of the Champions Trophy opener between Pakistan and New Zealand, ICC shared a video on Instagram of the former skipper receiving the cap. "The ICC T20I Team of the Year 2024 cap fits perfectly on Babar Azam," the ICC captioned the post. In 2024, Babar continued to shine as Pakistan's batting anchor, amassing 738 runs in 24 matches, including six half-centuries. Ofter recognised and praised for his consistency and sublime stroke play, Babar played a starring role for the Men in Green last year. He began 2024 with three consecutive fifties against New Zealand and continued to be the backbone of Pakistan's top-order. His ability to deliver under pressure reaffirmed his place among the world's finest cricketers in 2024. After establishing his dominance in T20Is last year, Babar will look to weave his magic in the ODIs in the Champions Trophy, which begins on Wednesday in Karachi. During the build-up to the marquee event, Pakistan tried to find its rhythm in the ODI tri-nation series against New Zealand and South Africa. On the home turf, the Blackcaps left the defending champions exposed twice. Pakistan lost the opener and then lost the final against the Kiwis. Along with Pakistan, Babar fell flat in his attempt to find consistency. In three matches, he mustered up a mere 62 runs at an underwhelming average of 20.67. The Men in Green would hope that their star batter returns to form in their title defence. Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (c), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi. (ANI)
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