World Cup 2023: Rohit Sharma, Babar Azam included as Australia pick ODI World 11: The likes of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Babar Azam, and Quinton de Kock have found a place for themselves in the present ODI World Playing11 picked by Australian cricketers. The Aussies have heaped praises on the player for their comprehensive gameplay and sensational capabilities.
Ace Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood hailed Pakistani skipper Babar Azam for his magnificent records and numbers. He said Babar is quickly following the footsteps of Indian maestro batter Virat Kohli in terms of scoring runs.
“He’s [Babar] probably a little younger than other guys, he’s sort of following the footsteps pretty quickly behind Virat. He’s a few runs behind but again his numbers are unbelievable,” said Hazlewood.
Left-arm batter Usman Khawaja placed Babar Azam in the fourth position in his ODI World 11, because of the presence of Virat Kohli in the third position. Khawaja was in all praise for the 28-year-old for his excellent attributes.
“He’s got the innate ability. Beautiful player of the ball, an excellent player of spin. He’s got all the attributes too. I couldn’t put him on three because of Kohli so he slips down to four,” Khawaja said of Babar.
Describing Babar Azam’s shot-playing technique, Marnus Labuschagne expressed his delight at the batter being so versatile. Labuschagne explained how crucial it will be to dismiss Babar Azam quickly during the World Cup 2023 if any side wants to gain an advantage.
“He’s [Babar] got a bit of a lower bat. He sort of stands up on top of the ball, a little bit more and he hits quite straight and where you know Kohli and Steve can tend to hit a bit of square up. I think he forces the ball down the ground really well,” Labuschagne said.
“He’s so versatile. He plays a high-tempo game naturally and having played against Babar, on wickets that don’t bounce, you know when you are going to India for the World Cup, there may not be too much bounce towards the back end, you almost feel like you don’t hang him and get him out,” the 29-year-old further added.
Rohit Sharma plays with cheat codes on
Australian all-rounder Sean Abbott said Indian captain Rohit Sharma probably plays with cheat codes on. He added that in one game Rohit won’t do much damage and the opposition tends to believe that his form is not up to his standards, but in the very next game, he shows up different colours and blows away the opposition single-handedly.
“You might look at his form and think he’s probably not going as well as he usually would. [And then] he’ll turn up the next game and he’ll look like he’s playing a different game with cheat codes on,” Sean Abbot said.
Josh Hazlewood put Rohit Sharma right behind Virat Kohli and said the opener has been the pick of the batters for India for a decade.
“Take Virat out, he’s probably the pick of ODI batters in the last 8-10 years,” Hazlewood said.
Describing how crucial it becomes for the bowlers to land the ball in the right spot to dismiss Rohit Sharma, Hazlewood added: “That little box becomes so small where you can land the ball. Put so much pressure back on the bowler. If you are a touch short, he’ll pick you up for a six.”
Travis Head counted on Rohit’s three double centuries, which advocates of his capabilities as a batter in the One Day Internationals.
“He has got three double hundreds in international cricket so he pretty much picks himself,” said Head.
“I think he’s the best one-day opening batter in the world. He has such a beautiful technique, uncomplicated,” said Agar. “The only good part about Rohit is that he doesn’t sweep a lot. So there’s one area where you can bowl and try and limit his scoring. But if just miss that area on a good pitch, it’s going miles.
Virat Kohli probably the best ODI Player to ever play
The Aussie cricketers were all full of praise and accolades for the legendary Indian batter Virat Kohli. The likes of Usman Khawaja, Travis Head, Alex Carey, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Marsh, and Ashton Agar talked about Virat Kohli’s greatness and his mindset to score over 13000 runs in the ODI format, which includes 47 centuries.
Mitch Marsh said Virat Kohli is probably the best batter to have played ODI format.
“Virat Kohli is probably the best ODI player ever to play the game,” Mitchell Marsh told Fox Cricket.
“Virat Kohli has great confidence, and his skill set is incredible. His game awareness and the way read the game are outstanding. He has all the shots in the book,” Travis Head said.
“There are normally two fielders in One Day cricket, mid-wicket and cover; they protect inside the ring. When there are guys in the deep protecting them, Virat Kohli is one of the best I’ve seen, missing midwicket and cover by a meter; that gives him four or two every time,” Khawaja said.
Mitchell Starc felt Virat Kohli is a big match guy and always turns the heat up in the important matches. The pacer termed Kohli as the best number three batter in the format.
“He is someone who thrives on the big games, and in a World XI team in the World Cup, he is going to be the best number three,” Starc said.
Australia’s ODI World 11 Top Order
1. Rohit Sharma, 2. Quinton de Kock, 3. Virat Kohli, 4. Babar Azam
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