Former Pakistan skipper Ramiz Raja heaped accolades on star batsman Babar Azam after the latter secured a century in the ongoing Lanka Premier League (LPL) match on Monday.
Raja’s admiration for Azam was so pronounced that he even humorously mentioned, “Security, class, and quality, calmness, he is your guy in such a situation, who can bat deep in the innings. I just absolutely love him – wanna [want to] marry him,” during his commentary throughout the game.
Azam’s exceptional performance took place while representing Colombo Strikers against Galle Titans at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium. With Titans setting a substantial target of 189 runs, Babar embarked on Strikers’ innings alongside Pathum Nissanka, forging a formidable 111-run partnership with the Sri Lankan player. The Pakistani skipper reached his century with a combination of eight boundaries and five sixes, amassing a total of 104 runs from 59 deliveries.
Worth noting is that Raja returned as a commentator for the recently concluded Test series between Pakistan and Sri Lanka. This stint marked his comeback to the commentary box since September 2021, following his election as the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for a three-year tenure.
However, Raja, along with other PCB members, was relieved of his position after just one year, replaced by a 14-member management committee led by Najam Sethi. Raja stands as the fourth former Pakistani international cricketer to lead the PCB, following Abdul Hafeez Kardar, Javed Burki, and Ijaz Butt.
Having captained Pakistan in 18 Test matches and 12 ODIs, Raja featured in a total of 255 international matches from 1984 to 1997, accumulating 8,674 runs. At 60 years old, he previously served as the PCB’s Chief Executive from 2003-2004, represented Pakistan on the ICC Chief Executives’ Committee, and currently holds a seat on the MCC World Cricket Committee.
A renowned broadcaster with prominent cricket networks worldwide, Ramiz Raja is celebrated as the distinctive voice of Pakistan cricket.
Also, see:
World Cup 2023: Pakistan Cricket team gets green signal to travel to India
