Pakistan white-ball captain Babar Azam won the hearts with his kind gesture to a child mascot of the T20 World Cup 2024, who happens to be his fan, after the Group A match against Canada at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on Wednesday, June 12.
The Men in Green finally opened their account, following two consecutive defeats against the co-hosts USA and arch-rivals Pakistan. Mohammad Rizwan once again stepped up for the team as he led the batting with an unbeaten innings of 53 off 53 balls. Skipper Babar Azam chipped in with useful contributions of 33 off 33 balls.
In bowling, Pakistan put their best forward to restrict Canada to modest total of 106/7 in a stipulated 20 overs. Mohammad Amir and Haris Rauf led Pakistan's bowling attack by picked two wickets each, while Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah took a scalp each.
With this crucial win against Canada, Pakistan have kept their hopes alive for Super 8 qualification in the ongoing edition of the T20 World Cup.
Babar Azam's kind gesture
The International Cricket Council (ICC) shared a video on its Instagram, wherein Babar Azam was seen consoling the kid, who is a child mascot of the tournament, and he hugged as he tried to control his tears ahead of the clash against India. The Pakistan skipper encountered the same kid in the fixture against Canada.
Speaking to Sanjana Ganesan after the win against Canada, Babar Azam said that he got worried when he saw the kid crying after India and Pakistan's anthems ahead of the clash.
"I met this kid during the Pakistan-India game. After the anthem, he came to me, He was excited and suddenly started crying. So I got worried. But he said I am a fan." Babar said.
"He did the same thing today. He was crying, standing in the line. We all have experienced this, when you meet a star, the excitement is at a different level." he added.
Babar Azam-led Men in Green suffered a narrow 6-run defeat against Team India after failing to achieve 120-run target as they were restricted to 119 in a stipulated 20 overs. Mohammad Rizwan's put a brake on Pakistan's momentum, eventually falling seven runs short of achieving the target.
'I have the responsibility to gift him something': Babar Azam
Pakistan captain said that it was his responsibility to gift the kid something that would make him memorable since he is a fan of him. Babar Azam added that he gifted him gloves.
"I thought if he is such a big fan of me, I have the responsiblity to gift him something. I had gloves in my hand, so I gave them to him. He became very excited and started crying. He asked me to sign the gloves." Babar said.
Meanwhile, Pakistan will play their final group stage match against Ireland at Central Broward Regional Park Stadium Turf Ground in Florida on June 16, Sunday. The win against Ireland will keep them in contention for the Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup 2024.
