Babar-Virat's Mutual Admiration Society

Pakistan Captain Babar Azam has graciously returned the compliment showered on him by batting superstar Virat Kohli.

Last year, Kohli recalled his first meeting with Babar and spoke in awe of his batting prowess.

'I saw a lot of regard and respect from him from day one, and that hasn't changed. Regardless of the fact he's probably the top batsman in the world across formats, performing so consistently and rightly so. He has amazing talent and I've always enjoyed watching him play,' Kohli told Star Sports.

'It feels really good. When someone talks about you like this,' Babar said in response. 'And what Kohli has said has made me very proud and happy. Such praise gives you confidence.'

'When I met him in 2019, he was at his peak. He's still at his peak. I wanted to take something from his game. I learnt a lot from him. He gave a detailed explanation to all my questions. That helped me. When you do such things for each other, it feels really good,' Babar told Star Sports.

Kohli has scored 12,898 ODI runs at an average of 57.32. He has 46 ODI hundreds to his name, which is the second most in the format's history.

Babar, who struck a match-winning 151 against Nepal in Pakistan's Asia Cup opener on Tuesday, August 29, 2023, has 19 ODI centuries and averages 59.47 in the format with 5.353 runs to his name.