"Pretty Darn Good": Dale Steyn Names His Pick For Best All-Format Batter

Former South Africa pacer Dale Steyn held a Q&A session on microblogging site Twitter on Thursday and was asked about the best batter across formats among current players. Responding to the question, the legendary pacer named Pakistan captain Babar Azam. "Who's the best batsman across all formats currently in your opinion?" a user asked him. "Maybe Babar? He's pretty darn good," Steyn wrote in his reply. Babar is currently the No.1 ranked batter in ODIs and T20 Internationals (T20Is), and fifth in Test rankings.

Maybe Babar? He's pretty darn good

— Dale Steyn (@DaleSteyn62) April 14, 2022

Babar Azam was in terrific form during Australia's recent tour of Pakistan. In the three-match Test series, he hit one century and two fifties. His marathon knock of 196 in the second Test almost powered Pakistan to a historic chase, but the match ended in a draw and Australia went on to win the third Test to take the series 1-0.

He carried his form into the ODI series, hitting 57 in Pakistan's defeat in the first match.

He then went on to hit back-to-back centuries to lead Pakistan to a 2-1 series triumph.

He slammed 114 off just 83 deliveries in the second ODI to help Pakistan chase 349. In the third match, he hit an unbeaten 105 as Pakistan cruise in their chase of 211.

In the one-off T20I, Babar hit 66 off 46 to help Pakistan register 162/8. However, a half-century from opposite number Aaron Finch saw Australia chase down the target in a tricky chase.

The Pakistan skipper has been in great form, right from the 2021 T20 World Cup, where he finished as the leading run-scorer.

Topics mentioned in this article

Babar Azam Dale Steyn Cricket