Babar, Shaheen and Rizwan are better than Kohli, Bumrah and Pant, says Aqib Javed

Former fast bowler Aqib Javed has claimed that Pakistan stars Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Mohammed Rizwan are better players than their respective Indian counterparts Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, and Rishabh Pant. 

Javed said that although the aforementioned Indian players are extremely skilful, their Pakistani counterparts are doing much better at the international level currently which ultimately makes them better players.

The comparison between Virat and Babar has been simmering for quite a while now. Talking about this comparison, Javed asserted that Kohli is already past his prime, whereas Babar’s stature as a cricketer is gradually increasing with each passing day. Therefore, the Lahore Qalandar’s head coach believes that the Pakistan captain is a superior batsman to the Indian legend at present.

“Now I think Babar is ahead. Kohli had his peak but now he is going down. But Babar, on the other hand, is going up,” Javed said.

Answering the question regarding the better bowler between Bumrah and Afridi, Javed said that the latter came into the scene when Bumrah already established himself as a fearsome fast bowler. But Afridi has proved himself an even better bowler on many occasions.

“I now think that Shaheen is better than Bumrah because when Shaheen came into the international circuit Bumrah had already established himself and the critics used to say that Bumrah is doing well in Tests, T20Is, and so but now Shaheen has proved he is even better and has more capacity than Bumrah,” Javed was quoted by ARY News. 

Aqib Javed, who represented Pakistan in 185 international matches, also gave his opinion on the constant comparisons between Rizwan and Pant. The Punjab-born pacer said that although Pant is a ferocious hitter of the cricket ball, the art of taking responsibility with utmost perfection makes Rizwan a finer batsman.

“Rizwan is better than Pant these days. There is no doubt that Pant is an extremely skillful player but the way Rizwan takes the responsibility, Pant is well behind him. It is often said that Pant is an aggressive player, but the aggressiveness doesn’t mean to hit a couple of big shots and got out but to stay at the crease, fight, and finish the game,” the 49-year-old concluded.