Star Pakistan batter Babar Azam joined cricket legends as his bat from the T20 World Cup 2022 final was displayed in the Long Room at Australia’s iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
The MCG management had approached the star batter to donate his bat to the prestigious collection which boasts iconic bats donated by cricketing legends, including Don Bradman, David Boon, Jack Hobbs, and Brian Lara.
The former Pakistan captain picked his bat used during the T20 World Cup 2022 final against England.
On the occasion, Babar Azam expressed pride in joining cricketing legends in the MCG Long Room.
“It’s an incredible honour to have my bat displayed in the MCG Long Room alongside some of the greatest batters in history. This means a lot to me because I played a World Cup final using this bat,” he said.
Reflecting on his playing experience at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground, the star batter recalled that he had good memories of playing at the MCG.
“It is one of the best grounds of my career,” the former Pakistan captain said.
It is worth mentioning here that Babar Azam is part of the squad on tour of Australia for a six-match white-ball PAK v AUS series, including three ODI matches and as many T20Is.
The iconic MCG will host the ODI series opener, while the subsequent matches are scheduled on November 8 and 10 in Adelaide and Perth, respectively.
The series will be followed by a three-match PAK v AUS T20I series, scheduled to commence on November 14.
Pakistan squad is led by wicketkeeping batter Mohammad Rizwan who was appointed the captain just ahead of the PAK v AUS series.
He replaced Babar Azam, who on October 2, announced his resignation from the white-ball captaincy, saying that he wanted to focus on his playing role and personal growth.
“Dear Fans, I’m sharing some news with you today. I have decided to resign as captain of the Pakistan men’s cricket team, effective as of my notification to the PCB and Team Management last month,” the star batter said in a statement posted to Instagram.