Handed Test captaincy along with leadership role in the limited-overs format, young Pakistan batsman Babar Azam remembered his days as a ball-picker in a Test match, saying he is living a dream.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Tuesday announced that Babar had replaced Azhar as Test captain, just one year after it had appointed the senior batsman to lead the Test side in place of Sarfaraz Ahmed.
"I remember being a ball picker in a Test match and at that time I thought what an honour it would be to play for Pakistan. The dream has come true and I thank the PCB for showing faith in me as a captain as well," the top batsman said in a video message released by the PCB.
Babar said he will not mind reaching out to his predecessors Azhar Ali and Sarfaraz Ahmed for becoming a good captain. "I have played under and learnt a lot from Azhar and Sarfaraz. And I will definitely seek their advice and pick up things from their mindset which will help me become a good Test captain," he said
Babar's message was released shortly after Azhar Ali tweeted that he offered his full support to Babar. Babar, just 26 and now captain across all three formats, said he expected a good tour of New Zealand as the team was gelling well.
"The team has gelled well in white-ball cricket and I am optimistic we can do well on the coming tour. My aim is to go along with seniors and young players."
Babar said his aim would be to maintain a healthy dressing room environment, key for positive results. He assured he would try to lead the Test side as well as he has captained the ODI and T20 teams since last year.
