CAPTAIN CRUNCH REAL NAME SERIES

He already has more ODI hundreds than all but two Pakistan batsman, and a World Cup hundred in a crunch game against New Zealand will go down as one of the great individual Pakistan ODI performances. He was the second fastest player to 2000 ODI runs and the second quickest to 1000 T20I runs.

He is, even with so much of his career still ahead of him, one of Pakistan's best ever batsmen. Over the years that followed, Azam became, far and away, Pakistan's best batsman, the most famous cricketer in the country, and among the best batsmen in the world. He would grasp that opportunity, and then some.

CAPTAIN CRUNCH REAL NAME SERIES

His hat-trick of ODI hundreds against West Indies led to a Test debut in the Test series that followed, and Azam had to opportunity to cement his spot as the careers of Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq wound down. Azam had the distinction of top scoring regularly in age-group domestic cricket before he was called up to the national side in 2015 and made his debut during the home ODI series against Zimbabwe - a rarity because Azam's rise was during Pakistan's isolation as an international venue due to security concerns. 'We didn't have to guide him, he was on his own, but we were supportive all the way,' Kamran Akmal said.

His journey began at an under-15 world championship in 2008 and he played two under-19 World Cups in 20, where he was Pakistan's top run-scorer. He was 22 years old at the time.īorn in Lahore and a first cousin to the Akmal brothers, Azam made his way up through age-group cricket. A right-hand, top-order batsman known for his discipline and level-headed attitude, Babar Azam laid claim to a long-term spot in Pakistan's batting line-up with a strong performance in 2016, making three consecutive ODI hundreds against West Indies in the UAE, and a 90 in his third Test, in Hamilton.

Captain crunch real name