Jayawardene all praise for Babar Azam

 

Dubai: Sri Lankan great Mahela Jayawardene has praised Pakistani Youngster Babar Azam after his brilliant form in the second edition of Pakistan Super League (PSL).

22-year old Babar Azam, playing for Karachi Kings, has scored 265 runs in eight matches of PSL 2017, just one run behind the top scorer West Indian DR Smith of Islamabad United.

Azam’s latest performance has won praises from his senior teammate from Sri Lanka, Mahela Jayawardene.

"Everyone has seen what he's capable of. He is a brilliant player. He will keep improving and learning. As long as he keeps evolving and has the capacity to work hard, he has a very bright future," said the Sri Lankan veteran of 552 international matches.

"He's getting experience playing with other players in this league.”

Other youngsters are also getting good opportunities. International players bring a lot of experience," he added when asked how the league has been helping Babar and other youngsters in Pakistan Super League.

Talking about his own experience of playing in Pakistan Super League, Jayawardene said that he is happy to be part of this fantastic league, but suggested that there should be at least six teams in PSL to make it more interesting.

"Too early to say, tough to compare (with other leagues) but good competitive cricket, there is good talent, and it's been fantastic," he said when he was asked how would he compare PSL with other leagues.

"Currently there are five teams, I would like to see six teams play, in order to make it more interesting otherwise just one team goes off. I think there are talks of six teams next year so, that might get the league a bit more," he added.

The Sri Lankan legend added that Karachi Kings has some very talented players and he's enjoying his time with the franchise.

"It's a very good franchise. We have been enjoying so far. Just trying to contribute whatever I can on and off the field. It's been a very good three weeks. I'm happy we are through to playoffs," he said on his experience of being associated with Karachi Kings.

He also praised his teammates for fighting back after early hiccups and said that many teams would have folded up after such a poor start, but Karachi Kings played well to stay alive in the tournament.

"We needed to win three of our last four games, which was never easy, I think the team has picked the momentum at the right time," he said.

Mahela also thanked the fan club of Karachi Kings for supporting the team throughout the tournament and said that the team will do best to keep the fans cheering.

"Fans have been very loyal, they kept supporting the team when we weren't doing that well and now the team has responded. Not making any promises but we will do our best," he said.