Former India captain Virat Kohli and Pakistan captain Babar Azam are two of the modern-day greats in cricket. They met each other for the first time for a conversation after the two teams’ high-profile clash during ICC Cricket Wold Cup 2019 in Manchester. It was Pakistan all-rounder Imad Wasim who introduced Azam to Kohli. For the unversed, Kohli and Wasim have known each other since their U-19 days.
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The U-19 level is a breeding ground for legendary cricketers. Speaking particularly of Indian cricketers, many high-profile players such as Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal are graduates of the U-19 level.
With no bilateral cricket scheduled between them in the last decade, India-Pakistan World Cup matches are pretty extreme in terms of the atmosphere and pressure. However, we have seen over the years that there is a friendly bond between the players of both countries. Similar language and culture play a vital part behind the same. One such bond appears to be between Kohli and Wasim.
Imad Wasim Had Introduced Babar Azam To Virat Kohli
Kohli and Azam have been two of those players who have proved their worth in all three formats of the game. There has been a lot of debate around the superior of the two but it has to be agreed that both are the masters of their craft. In a recent interview with Star Sports Network, Kohli talked about his first interaction with Azam.
Post India defeated Pakistan in Manchester over four years ago, Wasim was the one who informed Kohli that Azam wanted to talk to him. Impressed with Azam’s behaviour, Kohli talked about how the current Pakistani captain gave him a lot of respect from the first day itself in addition to labeling him as a “top batsman” in the world across formats.
When India and Pakistan met each other in 2019, Kohli was the top-ranked ODI batter in the world. It is noteworthy that Azam has taken that position with a huge margin. Kohli, meanwhile, is currently at the ninth position.
“The first interaction I had with him [Babar Azam] was during the 2019 [ODI] World Cup after the game in Manchester. I’ve known Imad [Wasim] since the Under-19 World Cup, and he said Babar wanted to have a chat. We sat down and spoke about the game. I saw a lot of regard and respect from him from day one, and that hasn’t changed.”.
Not only Kohli but even Azam has shown his admiration for the former Indian captain in the past. When Kohli was going through a lean phase professionally, Azam had publicly lent support to him. In return, Kohli also gracefully thanked Azam for a lovely gesture.
Did Imad Wasim Play ICC U-19 Cricket World Cup 2008?
Kohli mentioned that he knew Wasim since the U-19 World Cup. However, it is to be noted that India and Pakistan didn’t play a single match against each other during ICC U-19 World Cup 2008.
Captains of their respective teams that year, Wasim and Kohli did lock horns against each other thrice during their U-19 days of the past. Readers must note that these matches were played during India’s U-19 tour of Pakistan 2006 (held months after the U-19 World Cup that year and 13 years before the 2019 World Cup).
While Kohli scored 125 runs in those three matches including a half-century in a winning cause, Wasim managed to dismiss him once. It is to be noted that Wasim represented Pakistan in two U-19 World Cups, i.e., 2006 and 2008.
