Babar Azam pens heartwarming reply to 'kind letter' by 'future captain'

Pakistan skipper Babar Azam on Saturday penned a heartwarming response to a hand-written letter addressed to the Pakistan team which also featured a separate note for the captain, containing a special request.

The letter was shared by journalist Alina Shigri, who reported the fan to be an eight-year-old boy.

The young fan, Haroon Suria, in his letter said he was "very proud" of the team and that he loves Babar, whose jersey number — 56 — can be seen written atop the page.

"Well played everyone, nice batting, bowling," he wrote.

Encapsulating the emotional roller coaster that was Thursday's semi-final against Australia, Haroon said he felt proud in the beginning and thought Pakistan would win, "then in the middle I felt [nervous]" and then at the end he was "scared and frightened".

The boy expressed his desire to be the captain of the team in the future. "InshaAllah in the future I will be captain and I will make sure to invite all of your team to my team. We will go to the finals and win," he wrote.

Separately, in a note to Babar, Haroon requested that he collect the entire team's signatures on a paper and send them over to his house.

He ended the letter by saying that whether the team wins or loses, "we still love you".

Babar, in his response, thanked the boy for "such a kind letter" and called him a "champion".

"I absolutely believe in you and you can achieve anything with your focus, belief and hard work," the skipper told the boy.

He promised Haroon he would get him the team's autographs but said that he can't wait to get Haroon's autograph, whom he dubbed "future captain".