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Ex-England opener's sensational Babar Azam claim divides twitter after Chopra's 'Virat Kohli not in Fab 4' comment
Aakash Chopra caused a bit of a flutter online by stating that Virat Kohli can no longer be considered in the same level as the rest of the Fab 4
Virat Kohli's form, particularly in Test cricket, has been a topic of discussion for quite some time now. The former India captain's average has plummeted since 2019. In his last 25 matches, Kohli has scored just 1277 runs at an average of an average of 29.69 and has scored just one century in this period. While that century came in one of his more recent matches, his scores in the subsequent games has not helped in improving his numbers.
It has led to former opener Aakash Chopra declaring that Kohli can no longer be considered to be in the same category as Steve Smith, Joe Root and Kane Williamson. The four players have been called the ‘Fab four’ of Test batting ever since New Zealand Martin Crowe coined that term in 2014. But while Smith, Root and Williamson have remained consistent, if not bettering their pre-2019 numbers, Kohli's stats have plummeted.
Chopra's proclamation sparked an intense debate on Twitter and some asked if Pakistan captain Babar Azam can replace Kohli in that slot. Former England opener Nick Knight has now stirred the pot by stating that Babar is “Fab One at the moment in world cricket.”
The tweet has been hailed and slammed by many on the social media platform.
Babar has consistently been rated among the best Test batters in the world since he made his debut in October 2016. In 47 matches, Babar has scored 3696 runs at an average of 48.63 with nine centuries and 26 fifties. He remains much junior to Smith, Williamson, Root and Kohli. While Williamson has played 94 Tests and maintains an average of 54.89, Kohli, Smith and Root have all played over 100 matches. While Kohli's average was over 50 for much of his career, it has now gone down to 48.72. Root, who has been a sensational patch of form since 2016, has an average of 50.16 in 133 matches while Smith averages a whopping 58.94 in 100 Tests.
