Babar Azam is leading the statistical shoot-out against Virat Kohli: Mathew Hayden

The ongoing tussle between the fans of Virat Kohli and Babar Azam has captured the attention of everyone. Two amazing talents, each representing and performing at their best for the national teams, India and Pakistan, have set the cricketing world abuzz with their performances.

Virat Kohli boasts an illustrious ODI career, having amassed 13,271 runs in 274 ODI innings with a highest score of 183 and holds the record of being the fastest to the landmarks of 8000, 9000, 10,000, 11,000, 12,000 and 13,000 ODI runs.

In contrast, the rise of Babar in the cricketing world has been brilliant. Debuting for Pakistan in 2015, Babar has left an indelible mark on the sport. In 107 ODI appearances, he has scored 19 centuries. Babar's swift ascent is underscored by his status as the second-fastest player to reach 2000 ODI runs and 1000 T20I runs. Most notably, he snatched the record for the fastest 5000 ODI runs, surpassing the mighty Kohli.

When talking their performances, Kohli may hold a higher batting average, but Babar takes the lead in terms of strike rate. Speaking candidly, Australian cricket legend Matthew Hayden weighed in on the debate, lauding Babar Azam as a champion batter and suggesting that Babar currently leads the matchup against Kohli. 

"Babar Azam is a champion. He comes back from these things time and time again because that's what champions do. When you think about the statistical comparison at the same stage, Virat Kohli vs Babar Azam, Babar Azam is actually leading that shoot-out match,” he said on Star Sports.

"So that's how significant he is to the Pakistani team lineup and I am sure that he can do it in this shoot-out against Sri Lanka. Babar is central not only because he is the captain but he is absolutely central in terms of the talent of that batting unit,” he added.