Babar Azam arrived in Dhaka this week for Pakistan’s Test series against Bangladesh national cricket team and recalled a moment from 2007 that shaped his career. He landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport and trained at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur.
Babar posted a collage on Instagram and wrote, “If I can, you all can.” The post included images from his early days as a ball boy and recent photos with young boys at the ground.
He worked as a ball boy at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore in 2007. He collected balls near the boundary and watched players such as AB de Villiers, Younis Khan and Inzamam-ul-Haq. He walked several miles each day to reach the stadium.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board recently brought back the ball boy system during the New Zealand series. Tamim Iqbal, who leads the board’s ad hoc committee, oversaw the move.
Pakistan will play a two-match Test series in Bangladesh. The first Test will start in Mirpur, and the second will take place in Sylhet on 16 May.
Babar has played international cricket in Bangladesh once before. He featured in three T20Is and two Tests during the 2021 tour. He arrives after a strong campaign in the Pakistan Super League, where he led Peshawar Zalmi to the title. Bangladesh fast bowler Nahid Rana played alongside him in that competition.
