Former Pakistan skipper Rashid Latif was all praise for openers Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam after the pair guided the team to an easy win over West Indies in a three-match T20I series earlier this week. Pakistan pulled off a clean sweep over the Windies, who were missing a few of their big stars due to numerous reasons. Analysing Rizwan and Babar's performance in the third T20I, the former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter made an interesting observation, comparing the duo to their Indian counterpart, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
"About a year ago, we used to say that Pakistan doesn't have players like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma or KL Rahul, especially in T20 cricket. But I think, after some time, Indians will say 'we don't have players like (Mohammad) Rizwan and Babar (Azam)'," Latif said during a post-match discussion on PTV Sports show 'Game On Hai'.
Babar and Rizwan had been criticised in the past for their scoring rate. However, the 53-year-old highlighted that both the players have certainly improved their strike-rate this year.
"Earlier, we also had our reservations about their scoring rate but they made up for it by pacing their innings perfectly," he stated.
With Pakistan chasing a target of 208 in the final T20I in Karachi, Rizwan smoked 87 off 45 balls while Babar dazzled with a 53-ball 79.
The pair added 158 runs for the first wicket -- their fourth 150+ stand in T20 cricket in 2021 -- to lay the foundation of a dominant win.