Basit Ali namedrops Virat Kohli as he reacts to Babar Azam's two-ball duck in 1st Test

Published - 22 Aug 2024, 02:57 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 01:18 AM

Babar Azam and Basit Ali
Babar Azam and Basit Ali (Image Credits: Twitter)

Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali opened up about Babar Azam's disappointing outing in the first Test of the two-match series against Bangladesh. Basit Ali highlighted that Babar Azam and Virat Kohli are the only two cricketers who attract significant attention regardless of their batting performance.

Babar Azam faced severe criticism after being dismissed for a two-ball duck in the ongoing first Test in Rawalpindi on Wednesday, August 21. The batter came to bat when the team was struggling at 14/2. Left-arm pacer Shoriful Islam sent Babar back to the pavilion in the ninth over of Pakistan's innings.

World Talks About It When Babar Azam Gets Out - Basit Ali

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Basit Ali said that Babar Azam and Virat Kohli receive heavy criticism when they fail to score runs. Ali highlighted that Kohli was also slammed heavily for his failures in all three matches of the Sri Lanka series.

"The whole world talks about it when Babar Azam gets out. There are just two such players - Virat Kohli and Babar Azam. When they score a hundred, they get a lot of praise, but when they get out early, they get slammed heavily. We saw it happen when Virat Kohli got out in all three matches of the Sri Lanka series," Basit Ali said.

"He shuffled a lot on the very first ball that he faced. He is focusing on batting on the off stump to make sure he doesn't get out in the slips. He was playing Shaheen Afridi the same way in the nets. Do you don't get out on the leg side?"

"On the ball that he got out, you can see that the leg stump was visible. It is a wrong technique. You need to get set on such pitches. When there is a channel bowling, you have to fight it out and block your shots. This is not T20 cricket where you will hit blindly."

Shan Masood Was Not Out - Basit Ali

Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto won the toss and chose to field in overcast conditions. The home team struggled early after a delayed start to the first Test against Pakistan. Pakistan Test skipper Shan Masood scored only six runs off 11 balls before being caught behind off Shoriful Islam's bowling.

Masood was initially declared not out by the umpire. However, the decision was overturned by the third umpire after Bangladesh used DRS. Masood was visibly frustrated, as UltraEdge replays indicated the spike occurred after the ball had passed the bat. Basit Ali also reacted to the controversial dismissal.

Basit Ali stated that Shan Masood said that the ball had brushed the pad rather than the bat. He criticized Masood for looking towards the keeper after being beaten, which may have influenced the third umpire's decision to overturn the on-field call.

"Shan Masood was not out. No matter what people say, the ball missed the bat. It hit the pad. Shan Masood did a stupid thing of immediately looking behind after missing the ball. He gave a chance to the third umpire," Basit added.

Also read: Virat Kohli, Steve Smith tagged kingpins if India and Australia want to win Border-Gavaskar trophy 2024-25

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Basit Ali Virat Kohli Babar Azam Pakistan national cricket team Bangladesh National Cricket Team Pakistan vs Bangladesh 2024 Bangladesh tour of Pakistan 2024