Watch: Babar Azam does a Rohit Sharma, stuns Pakistani journalist with ‘main coach thodi hu’ remark after PSL match

Babar Azam's “Am I their coach?” remark had uncanny similarities to Rohit Sharma's reply to a Pakistani journalist's question during the 2019 ODI World Cup.

Babar Azam has often been compared to Virat Kohli mainly because of the way he bats and the towering milestones he has achieved very early in his career. Many believe, he is the closest to Pakistan's answer to India's Virat Kohli. Babar, for his part, has always maintained the utmost respect for Kohli. The Pakistan captain took social media by storm with his "this too shall pass" tweet in support of Kohli, when the former India captain was going through a tough phase. Amid all this, very few have even thought about drawing similarities between Babar Azam and Rohit Sharma. But after what transpired in the post-match press conference of a Pakistan Super League (PSL) match between Peshawar Zalmi and Islamabad United, they might have to rethink.

Babar Azam and Rohit Sharma

Peshawar captain Babar Azam did a Rohit Sharma by coming back with a hilarious reply to a journalist who wanted his opinion about Karachi Kings' struggles in the ongoing PSL. Karachi have lost four matches (three of them in the last over) this season. Babar, who was the leader of the Karachi Kings till the last edition, was asked about the improvements Karachi need to make in order to stage a comeback in the league.

"Main unka coach thodi hu? Aapse mujhse puch rahe hai unke baare mein. Aj ke match ki baat karte hai (Am I their coach? Why are you asking me about them? let's talk about today's match)," Babar said after his side lost to Islamabad United.

Watch Video: Babar Azam gives Rohit Sharma-like reply to Pakistan journalist after PSL match

The answer had uncanny similarities to Rohit's reply to a Pakistani journalist's question during the 2019 ODI World Cup. “Agar main Pakistan ka coach bana to main bataunga, abhi kya bataunga (If I become the coach of Pakistan, I can tell. What will I say now),” replied Rohit with a big smile when he asked about how Pakistan batters can improve.

As far as the PSL was concerned, fast bowler Hasan Ali grabbed 3-35 and Rahmanullah Gurbaz made 62 off 31 balls in their first game of this season to spearhead two-time champions Islamabad United's six-wicket victory over Peshawar Zalmi on Thursday.

Hasan took the wheels off Peshawar’s blazing start with three wickets in the space of eight balls before captain Babar Azam’s unbeaten 75 anchored his team to 156-8.

Gurbaz capitalized on two dropped catches by James Neesham and raised his half-century off 24 balls as Islamabad raced to 159-4 with 31 balls to spare and notched their second win in three games.

Young Pakistan power-hitter Mohammad Haris (40) and Babar both showed aggression in the batting powerplay as Peshawar motored to 69-0 in the first six overs. Both smashed nine boundaries and two sixes against fast bowlers in the powerplay and didn’t spare Hasan, who conceded 17 in his first over.

Islamabad captain Shadab Khan broke the threatening stand when Haris scooped a return catch to the leg-spinner as he tried to play against the spin.