There is no basis to compare Kohli and Babar, the Indian star is clearly ahead: Zaheer Abbas

Pakistan’s great Zaheer Abbas feels that comparisons between Virat Kohli and Babar Azam are baseless as the Indian superstar is much more consistent than Pakistan’s under-fire rival.

Babar, once considered part of the ‘Fab Five’ that included Kohli, Steve Smith, Joe Root and Kane Williamson, is currently experiencing a prolonged slump in form.

“Yeh fizool ki baatein hai (comparisons are meaningless). Virat Kohli scores in every match, the other player (Babar) doesn’t score in any match, so how can you compare. The one who scores is the bigger player,” Abbas said during the session of Cricket Predicta Conclave here he told PTI on the sidelines.

While Kohli has 80 international hundreds to his name, the much younger Babar has scored 31 centuries across formats.

Abbas also acknowledged India’s consistency across formats and said the Rohit Sharma-led team will be a strong contender for the upcoming Champions Trophy.

“The Indian team is generally very good. Their batsmen are good and their bowlers are also good. They are a very balanced team, a team that plays soch samajh kar (thoughtfully),” Abbas said.

“They have a very good captain who understands cricket very well. So when everything goes in your favour, it goes smoothly. The situation is the same in India at the moment.

“They have a very high chance of being successful in the Champions Cup because they have a balanced team,” the 77-year-old player said.

Hailed as the ‘Asian Bradman’ for his insatiable appetite for runs, Abbas was one of the most elegant batsmen of his time. He played 78 Tests and 62 ODIs for Pakistan and amassed 5062 and 2572 runs respectively.

Teams in T20s can win by chance, not in Tests

The 77-year-old believes that Test cricket truly tests players’ character, endurance, mental strength, technique and consistency.

“Test cricket is real cricket. This is the real test of every bowler. At one point, India and Pakistan’s Test team were good. And now the boards understand that we cannot continue without Test cricket.

“How many T20s can you play? How many white-ball tournaments can the ICC organize? Maybe 2 or 3 but eventually you have to go back to ODIs or Tests.

“If you continue with Test cricket, cricket will last longer. I know people like to get quick results but gradually they will get bored of T20s and we need Tests and ODIs.” A growing number of players are turning down central contracts from boards to focus on their careers in T20 franchise leagues; This is a worrying trend that Abbas believes needs to be addressed.

“It’s the ultimate in Test cricket. Anyone can win in T20. Teams can win by luck. But that’s not the case in Test cricket because there are two innings. You have the opportunity to do good things in one inning. Test cricket teaches you a lot.”

“I know a lot of players don’t want to play T20 instead of Test cricket. This needs to be stopped. They need to come up with something…

“It’s something like you have to play at least 5 or 6 Test matches a year, then you can play ODI or T20. A minimum number of Test matches have to be allocated every year,” he added.

Bangladesh’s loss was a huge failure

Pakistan, once a cricket powerhouse, now finds itself in a difficult situation. The downward trend started with the Asia Cup last year and was followed by the team’s early elimination from the ODI World Cup in 2023 and this year’s T20 World Cup.

They suffered their first Test series defeat against Bangladesh earlier this month.

“Bohot bada dhakka tha Pakistan lost to Bangladesh (it was a huge defeat). We never thought that Pakistan would not only lose, but lose this badly.

“Pakistan cricket is abhi daamadol hai (not in very good condition). Performance dropped. I’m hopeful it will get better. There are many reasons behind this.

“It happens, West Indies were the best in the world, now it is not the case. But I hope Pakistan cricket will return to the top, the boys are working hard.” Pacer Shaheen Afridi replaced Babar as captain in T20Is after the 2023 ODI World Cup but the former was re-appointed captain earlier this year.

Abbas urged the PCB to take action before the problem escalates further.

“Yes, there have been rivalries between Pakistani teams in the past but the board must quickly take into account the rivalry between Babar and Shaheen. The quicker the better because it will continue to escalate.

Abbas said, “Competition is good, but it should not become serious, if it does, it will harm the team.”

Abbas, former Pakistan player Mudassar Nazar and former Pakistan coach Dav Whatmore addressed the conclave to celebrate the centenary of Cricket Predicta, Asia’s largest live statistics-based cricket show.