“There Is Respect, He Is Always Keen To Learn”: Virat Kohli On Babar Azam

India vs Pakistan, Asia Cup 2022: Virat Kohli said that he has always had good conversations with Babar Azam and the Pakistan captain is always keen to learn.

Cricket fans got to witness another nail-biting encounter between India and Pakistan in the Asia Cup, Super 4 match on Sunday. The match turned out to be a forgetful one for the Indian side, as they faced a five-wicket defeat against their arch-rivals. Despite the heated intensity of the game and so much hype, the players of both countries still carry out a friendly relationship between them, which always lifts up the spirit of the sport. On Sunday, India star batter Virat Kohli backed Pakistan skipper Babar Azam and called him a “talented player” who is always keen to learn.

In the post-match press conference, Kohli said, “Babar Azam is a very nice guy, I have always had good conversations with him. He is much junior to me, so kinship, I am not sure of. But there is respect. There is always respect. He is always keen to learn. I mentioned this before; he spoke to me after the 2019 World Cup about how to go about things, and he has always been keen to learn. So, it is no surprise that he is playing like this and in all formats of the game. He is obviously a very very talented player.”

“It’s always very nice meeting him and all the other guys. They all are very sweet, they all get along with us and are friendly with all of us. There is mutual respect between both teams and I have certainly realised that from last year. We are very competitive teams but very respectful as well,” he added.

In the ongoing Asia Cup, Babar has been struggling with his form. So far, he has managed to score 10, 9, and 14 runs in three matches.

Talking about the match, a brilliant knock of 60 off 44 deliveries from Virat Kohli, coupled with an aggressive start by openers Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul, powered India to 181/7 in the Asia Cup Super 4 clash.

However, it was not enough as Mohammad Rizwan (71 off 51) and Mohammad Nawaz (42 off 20) set up Pakistan’s chase perfectly and they ended up winning with one delivery to spare.