NEW DELHI: Comparisons between Pakistani batsman Babar Azam and Indian batsman stalwart Virat Kohli have persisted for a long time. Every time Babar finds form, scores runs or leads his team to victory, comparisons with Kohli flood social media, especially among Pakistan fans. However, former Indian cricketer Wasim Jaffer has rubbished these comparisons, saying the Pakistani star is overrated.
“Dekhiye, achhe player hain, isme koi shak nahi hai. Main personally unko kaafi like bhi karta hoon. Lekin mujhe lagta hai ki unko unki had se zyada hype mil gayi. Unko itna chadha diya gaya ki unki comparison Virat Kohli se hone lagi, unko ‘king’ ja pelotane laga (Look, he is a good player, there is no doubt about “I personally like him a lot, but I feel like he has been promoted beyond his limits. He was elevated so much that comparisons with Virat Kohli started and they started calling him ‘king’,” Jaffer said in a video posted on his social media.
“Jab aapko baar-baar Virat Kohli compares kiya jata hai, media aapko ‘king’ bulata hai, toh pressure automatically aata hai. Mujhe lagta hai kahin na kahin unhone test kiya Virat jaisa banne ka – ya us tarah plays karne ka jaise Virat ne Indian team ke liye kiya. Lekin Virat, Virat hai – is the generation of the best players than me se ek. No need for comparison unpe pressure banata gaya (When you are constantly compared to Virat Kohli and the media calls you ‘king’, the pressure automatically increases. I feel like somewhere he tried to look like Virat, or tried to perform like Virat has done for the Indian team. But Virat is Virat, one of the best players of this generation. These unnecessary comparisons kept adding pressure on him),” he added.
Babar had been going through a rough patch, struggling to get runs, but bounced back strongly by scoring a century for Peshawar Zalmi against Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League. He reached his hundred in just 52 balls.
Babar last represented Pakistan in the 2026 T20 World Cup, where he suffered a poor spell with the bat, one of the reasons behind Pakistan’s disappointing campaign in the tournament. He scored just 91 runs in six matches at an average of 22.75 and a strike rate of 112.34, as Pakistan failed to advance beyond the Super Eight stage.
When asked about the reasons behind Babar’s downfall despite being a very skilled batsman and an icon of Pakistan cricket, Jaffer said: “Mere hisaab se do cheezein thi – ek toh overhype aur comparison, aur doosra captaincy. Captain ke taur par wo us tarah ki team build nahi kar paaye jaisi karni chahiye thi. Unke paas chances the, team finals tok bhi gayi – World Cup final, Asia Cup final: lekin wo Pakistan cricket ko next level par consistently nahi le ja paaye (In my opinion, there were two reasons: one was hype and comparisons, and the other was captaincy. As captain, he could not build the kind of team he should have. He had opportunities, the team even reached finals (World Cup final, Asia Cup final) but could not consistently take Pakistan cricket to the next level)”.
“Aaj bhi, without a doubt, wo Pakistan ke best batsmen me se ek hain. Talent aur class dono hai unme. Bas expectations aur pressure ka handle thoda better hota, toh image aur alag ho sakti thi (Even today, without a doubt, he is one of Pakistan’s best batsmen. He has talent and class. It’s just that if he had handled the expectations and pressure a little better, the scenario could have been very different),” Jaffer said.