PakPassion presents an exclusive interview with the highly rated Pakistan Under 19 captain and ZTBL batsman Babar Azam.

17 year old Babar is widely recognised as a precocius batting talent and a cricketer that could in future become a batting mainstay for Pakistan.

-

By PakPassion Staff (11th March 2012)

Babar is rated by the NCA coaches as well as established cricketers in Pakistan and he's recently come back from a very good tour of South Africa with the Pakistan Under 19s where he combined with Sami Aslam and formed a very fruitful opening partnership at the top of the Pakistani batting order.

In his opening two matches for ZTBL in Division 1 of the National 50 over cup has made 86 not out and 100.

PakPassion.net : It's good to be speaking again with you Babar. You've really progressed since the last time we spoke.

Babar Azam : Many thanks, yes things have been going well.


PakPassion.net : You have recently returned from South Africa where you were captain of the Pakistan Under 19s Tell us a bit about that tour.

Babar Azam : The tour of South Africa went very well. One important aspect was the preparation for that tour. We held a very good training camp before the tour with our coach Sabih Azhar. The camp lasted 3 or 4 days and we had some practice matches in the camp, with Sabih Azhar doing a very good job in preparing the boys both mentally and physically for the tour of South Africa.


PakPassion.net : Tell us about the levels of preparation for the tour of South Africa?

Babar Azam : There was a lot of group training, matches between the boys at the camp and then one to one coaching. It was really useful preparation and served us well for a pretty successful tour.


PakPassion.net : There are some of your Under 19 team mates that are really catching the eye in domestic cricket and who did well on tour in South Africa?

Babar Azam : Zia ul Haq and Ehsan Adil both did very well in South Africa. Sami Aslam is a very good player and made a lot of runs on that tour.


PakPassion.net : Umar Waheed is another of the current Under 19 squad who is supposed to be quite a talent?

Babar Azam : Umar Waheed batted very well in the middle order on the tour of South Africa. He seemed to score runs when the team needed them most and held the middle order together very well. He's also a good fielder.


PakPassion.net : Conditions in South Africa will have been totally different to what you and your team mates will have experienced previously in Pakistan. The tour must have been very beneficial for all of your development as cricketers?

Babar Azam : I was one of the lucky ones in that it was my second tour of South Africa. I have previously toured South Africa with my school in Lahore, so I had the benefit of previous experience in touring South Africa, but nonetheless to be playing in those conditions was very useful. The boys who toured South Africa for the first time will have benefitted a lot too, the wickets, the fact that we were playing in windy conditions quite often, it was all very benefical. Everybody adjusted very well to the conditions in South Africa.


PakPassion.net : You won the series against South Africa but lost in the tri nations final to the same opposition. You must have been disappointed to lose the final?

Babar Azam : Yes it was disappointing as we'd played a lot of good cricket leading up to the final and had been working very hard. Our batsmen just did not click in the final and we lost too many early wickets. The middle order pulled it back a little, but on the day we weren't good enough.


PakPassion.net : You were opening for the Under 19s in South Africa but have been batting in the middle order for ZTBL. What do you feel is your best position in the batting order and where we will see you bat in the long term?

Babar Azam : I prefer to open the innings, but ZTBL have required me to bat at number 4, which is also fine. It's whatever the team requires really.


PakPassion.net : You didn't play in the Quaid E Azam Trophy for ZTBL this time around, why was that?

Babar Azam : I was playing in the Under 19 tournament for ZTBL and concentrated on that instead.


PakPassion.net : You've started really well in the ongoing National 50 over competition scoring 86 not out and 100. You must be really pleased with your efforts so far in that tournament and how much of it is donw to the very successful tour of South Africa?

Babar Azam : Yes I came back from South Africa buzzing with confidence. It's really pleasing to be in the runs and playing alongside a number of very helpful and experienced cricketers at ZTBL. It's also very pleasing to be scoring the runs from the number four position.


PakPassion.net : You took 2 wickets in the match yesterday. How's the off spin coming along, are you bowling more these days?

Babar Azam : I'd still class myself as a part time bowler, but the captain in the previous match asked me to bowl and I took 2 wickets. My bowling is an area that I am looking to develop and am also working on and hopefully I'll start to bowl more regularly going forward.


PakPassion.net : You are obviously only 17 years of age and whilst you have improved significantly already, you must feel that there is still so much for you to learn in cricketing terms?

Babar Azam : I'm just trying to focus on each innings and learn from my mistakes. If I am dismissed due to a poor shot then I just try not to repeat that mistake again and learn from each innings. Practice is key, I'm taking every practice session seriously and working hard with my coaches on improving my cricket. I'm fortunate that I have a lot of good people around me, guiding me and helping me develop as a cricketer.


PakPassion.net : Are you still attending the National Cricket Academy, as and when time allows?

Babar Azam : Yes when I'm not taking part in matches, then in the mornings I train with Yasir Malik on fitness work. I also do gym work and training at my local cricket club in Lahore. Then at the NCA I work with Manosoor Rana, Ijaz Ahmed and Ali Zia. The coaches at the NCA are very helpful and whenever I need advice or help from them, they are always available.


PakPassion.net : Last time we spoke you were combining your studies with your cricket. Is that still the case?

Babar Azam : I had to give up my studies in order to concentrate on cricket. I was finding it quite difficult to combine the studies with all of the cricket that I was playing, but I plan to go back to my studies in the future.


PakPassion.net : Captaincy isn't for everyone. You've led the Pakistan Under 19s of late, do you enjoy captaincy and think you can handle the responsibility?

Babar Azam : It wasn't easy at first as you feel the pressure of captaincy, but you learn from your mistakes. Sabih Azhar has helped me a lot with my captaincy and I feel a lot more confident in my ability to captain and certainly don't feel under the same amount of pressure that I was feeling when I first captained the Under 19 team.


PakPassion.net : Looking ahead to the Under 19 World Cup in August. What do you think of Pakistan's chances in this competition?

Babar Azam : Before we focus on the World Cup, we need to plan for the Under 19 Asia Cup which will be held in Malaysia in a couple of months. There will be a pre Asia Cup training camp where 40 boys will attend. This camp will be very useful to gauge the talent that is available.

From those 40 boys, a squad will be selected to take part in the Asia Cup. Let's see who is selected for the Asia Cup and how we perform at this tournament first.

Obviously whoever performs well in the Asia Cup will stand a good chance of making the Under 19 World Cup squad. I think once we see how we perform in the Asia Cup and see which boys are selected, we will then have a better idea of how we will do at the World Cup.


PakPassion.net : Looking further into the future, your natural progression would indicate that at some point you will be playing international cricket. Excited or a bit nervous about the thought of playing for Pakistan at senior level?

Babar Azam : Playing international cricket is the dream of every professional cricketer, but I'm not letting that dream affect what I am doing at the moment. The next step from Under 19 cricket is to establish myself in domestic cricket, then perform well in the Pakistan "A" side and then hopefully get selected for the senior Pakistan side.

I feel it's really important to get a good grounding in junior cricket and domestic cricket before being picked on the international stage.


PakPassion.net : Thanks for your time today and best wishes for the future?

Babar Azam : My pleasure and thanks for the good wishes.