Babar Azam to make BBL debut with Sydney Sixers

Pakistan’s Babar Azam will be competing in the upcoming season of the Big Bash League, as an international recruit for the Sydney Sixers.

“It’s an exciting opportunity to play in one of the world’s best T20 leagues and to be a part of such a successful and respected franchise,” Babar said. It will be the first time the Pakistani batter will be competing in the Australian T20 league. He has previously competed in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), England’s Vitality Blast, the Lanka Premier League (LPL), and of course, the Pakistan Super League (PSL).

Babar is a pre-draft signing for the Sixers, as every franchise is permitted to sign one international recruit before the overseas player draft, which is set for June 19. Other Pakistani players, including Shaheen Afridi, Shadab Khan, Haris Rauf, and Mohammad Rizwan, will be up for grabs at the draft. The Brisbane Heat will be making the number one pick.

While Babar has played his fair share of experience in the format, having scored 11330 runs across the 320 T20s he’s competed in, 128 of which were T20Is, he was dropped from the national T20 side earlier this year. The decision was reportedly made due to his poor performances in white ball series and the Champions Trophy.

However, Babar competed in the recent tenth iteration of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) as part of the Peshawar Zalmi. He scored 288 runs across the 10 innings he played, including three half centuries.

“I’m looking forward to contributing to the team’s success, building a strong connection with the fans, and sharing this experience with my friends, family and supporters at home in Pakistan.”