'Saw him few years ago in Australia and thought sky was the limit for him. He's now ...': Ponting's big Babar Azam claim

Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting also talked about Pakistan's chances in the 2022 T20 World Cup.

Pakistan captain Babar Azam's rise in world cricket has been among the most talked-about topic. At just 27, Babar is already breaking records and making his mark in the sport, across formats. He is already dominating white-ball cricket, with his No.1 ranking in both T20Is and ODIs, while he is in the top-4 in the Test rankings, aiming to rule all three charts. And as world cricket stand in amaze to stare at Babar's brilliance, Australia legend Ricky Ponting made massive claim on the youngster.

Babar Azam; Ricky Ponting

Ponting was in discussion with The ICC Review on Pakistan's chances in the impending T20 World Cup which will be held in Australia later in October, when the former Australia captain touched upon the impact of Babar on Pakistan cricket and how he has improved from the player he had seen a couple of years back in Australia.

“I saw him up close and personal a couple of years ago out here in a Test series against Australia and I said it then, I thought the sky was the limit for this guy as far as Test match batting (was concerned) and, if anything, he’s probably got better and better in the last couple of years,” he said.

Pakistan in 2022 T20 World Cup

Pakistan legend Waqar Younis recently claimed that the Babar-led side has a superb chance to claim their second T20 World Cup trophy. They had come close last year in the UAE when they scripted an unbeaten run in the group stage, which included their historic 10-wicket win against India in Dubai, only to be defeated by eventual champions Australia in the semi-final. But Ponting isn't too sure about Pakistan's chances in this edition.

While he hailed the presence of star pacer Shaheen Afridi and Mohammad Rizwan in the opening position, he pointed out that the batting line-up is extremely reliant on captain and No.1 ranked batter Babar.

"If Babar doesn’t have a great tournament, I don’t think they can win," Ponting said.

"Their openers are very important and their new-ball bowlers are very important, but that role of the spin bowler in Australia might be a little bit more difficult with wickets that probably won’t give them assistance."