PSL 2023: "It Might Give Someone Help And Confidence" - Babar Azam Opens Up On His Viral "This Too Shall Pass" Tweet For Virat Kohli

Updated - 15 Feb 2023, 11:20 AM

Virat Kohli & Babar Azam. Image Credits: Twitter

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Pakistan captain Babar Azam has opened up about his famous tweet during India’s tour of England last year in support of former Indian captain Virat Kohli. Azam took to the social media platform Twitter to publicly share a “This too shall pass” message for Kohli to express his belief that it is crucial for athletes to support each other during tough times.

Both cricketers are considered to be the greatest batsmen of the modern era. There has long been debate over who is the better batsman, but both players share a healthy rivalry on the field. Babar is currently the number one batsman in the 50-over format, while Kohli is slightly lower in the rankings due to a rare lean patch in his cricketing journey.

Despite repeated comparisons between the two cricketers, Babar and Kohli support each other off the field. Babar tweeted his support for Virat during the extended lean patch for the Indian batter in July last year. The tweet showed the friendly bond between the two. At the time, Kohli had not scored an international century since his 136 against Bangladesh in November 2019.

Babar Azam took to Twitter to post, “This too shall pass. Stay strong. #ViratKohli”.

Virat Kohli replied to the Pakistan captain’s tweet. “Thank you. Keep shining and rising. Wish you all the best,” he wrote.

This too shall pass. Stay strong. #ViratKohli pic.twitter.com/ozr7BFFgXt

— Babar Azam (@babarazam258) July 14, 2022

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Almost seven months later, Babar Azam opened up about his viral tweet for Virat Kohli in an interview with ICC Digital Insider Zainab Abbas. He said that he was sharing mutual sympathy with his on-field rival.

“As a sportsperson, anyone can go through such a time. At that time I thought maybe if I tweet it might give someone help and confidence. See, as a player, you try to back every sportsman in a difficult time,” Babar told ICC Digital.

“It is in difficult times when you get to know what you are thinking about others. At that time, I thought I should have done that and maybe something positive will come out of it. Something which can be a plus point,” he added.

The 34-year-old regained his form against Afghanistan during the Asia Cup 2023, scoring his maiden T20I century and his first international century after almost three years. The right-handed batter continued his form in the ICC T20 World Cup 2022, becoming the leading scorer in the tournament. He scored three ODI hundreds against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

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