T20 World Cup: Get to know the captains via interesting facts

The ninth edition of the ICC men's T20 World Cup kicks off on June 1, with Canada facing co-hosts USA in Dallas. As the cricketing world gears up for another thrilling event, let's delve into some interesting facts about the captains of the 20 participants -- this time, focusing on Pakistan's Babar Azam. 

Babar Azam

Pakistan skipper Babar Azam will have a point to prove in the upcoming T20 World Cup as the star batter has had to deal with criticism for the lack of acceleration in his batting despite piling on the runs for his side in the 20-over format.

Having led Pakistan to a semifinal finish in the 2021 edition and a runner-up finish a year later in Australia, Babar will be hoping to do one better as captain this time around.

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T20 World Cup: Get to know the captains via interesting facts

He led Pakistan in 55 consecutive T20Is, the most by a captain of any team, before stepping down.

Babar is hot on Virat Kohli's trail for most runs in the format. Kohli tops the charts with 4037 runs, while Babar is second having amassed 3987.

With 427 fours, Babar holds the record for most boundaries hit but his side will also want to him to smack a few big ones in the T20 World Cup.

Babar has struggled to match his career strike-rate of 129.91 in the two editions of the T20 World Cups he's played in. In the 2021 tournament, he scored at a rate of 126.25 and in the 2022 edition, his strike-rate was 93.23. 

Babar Azam in T20 World Cups

Matches: 13

Innings: 13

Runs: 427

Best score: 70 (49) against Namibia in the 2021 edition.

Average: 35.58

Strike-rate: 114.48

50s: 5

As captain:

Matches: 13

Won: 9

Loss: 4

Runs: 427

Average: 35.58