Babar Azam hits maiden ton in Vitality Blast

LAHORE: Pakistan batting star Babar Azam continued to mint runs at the ongoing Vitality Blast 2019, hitting his maiden century of the tournament against Hampshire, as Somerset recorded another victory yesterday.

“You can see that Babar is No.1 in the world for a reason,” said Tom Abell, the Somerset captain, who shared a 113-run stand with the Pakistani, quoted ICC.

Azam, who is also the world’s leading T20I batsman slammed a career-high figures of 102 not out, reaching the milestone with a last-ball six over square leg.

“He is playing a different game to the rest of us with the shots he plays and how cleanly he hits the ball. For younger guys, it’s amazing to be up the other end and in the changing room. Some of the shots he plays just take your breath away. The beauty of Babar is that he plays proper cricket shots all way through and we can bat around him,” said Abell.

Fellow mates also congratulated Azam for his blistering knock as the opening batsman cemented his place as the tournament’s leading run scorer. Babar Azam smashed a stunning hundred off 55 deliveries at the ongoing Vitality Blast 2019.

The world’s leading number one T20I batsman slammed a career-high 102 not out against Hampshire in Southampton on Friday, 9 August. The century came with a last-ball six over square leg, featuring six sixes along with seven fours.

Azam took his side to 202/4, the batsman also made gains in fielding picking up two catches as Hampshire were reduced to 69/6 in 12.1 overs, before rain washed out the rest of match.

Earlier, the Pakistani batting superstar lead the way for his side against Mohammad Amir’s Essex in a one-sided encounter. Babar, top scored with 56 runs off just 39 deliveries featuring seven boundaries and one maximum, helping Somerset post a mammoth 225 runs on board in their 20-overs against Essex at Chelmsford on Wednesday.

Babar has been Pakistan’s prime batsman for the past year or so and his sublime form has continued in the T20 tournament, as he once again emerged as the Vitality Blast 2019 leading run scorer with 425 runs in eight games.