'I was overwhelmed after seeing him'- Babar Azam recalls how AB de Villiers inspired him in his budding days

Babar Azam-AB de Villiers (source: Twitter)

Pakistan team captain Babar Azam has established himself as one of the biggest names of the current lot of cricketers. At the age of just 28 years, he has become one of the most successful cricketers to come from Pakistan. The inspiring journey to becoming one of the best batters in international cricket began in 2007 for a young Babar.

When South Africa visited Pakistan in 2007, Babar was a ball boy. The Test series between Pakistan and South Africa was the end of Inzamam-ul-Haq's illustrious Test career, while it also welcomed superstar AB de Villiers in the Lahore Test.

On Babar's 28th birthday, Pakistan Cricket recalled how the premier batter was a big fan of De Villiers. Former South Africa captain De Villiers was one of the game's greatest batters in the modern era, appearing in 114 Tests, 228 One Day Internationals (ODIs), and 78 Twenty20 Internationals. Mr 360°, as he is affectionately known, is also remembered for his impactful stint with Bangalore in the Indian T20 League.

"During that time, I was very fond of AB de Villiers. I was overwhelmed after seeing him. I used to learn from him, what he was doing, how he was batting and fielding. I used to stay near the South African team to notice what De Villiers was doing. I used to get a lot of boost after seeing him," Babar said in a video uploaded by Pakistan Cricket on Twitter.

Here is Babar Azam's video

Replug ▶️



🎥 From ball-picker in 2007 to Pakistan's current all-format captain - watch @babarazam258 recount his journey.pic.twitter.com/U20bwvjk4c

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) October 15, 2022

Babar recalled his days as a ball boy and how Inzamam ul Haq almost broke a record that he witnessed on the ground.

"I used to give knocking to our players as a ball boy, collect balls from the boundary. During that time, Inzamam played his last match for Pakistan. He needed two runs (3 runs) to break Javed bhai's record. But unfortunately, he got stumped. I noticed Inzamam carefully walking to the dressing room. I also remember Inzamam venting out inside the dressing room," Babar added.