Two of the best batsmen in the world, Babar Azam and Virat Kohli, have been a focus of a debate on social media for the past several years. After Babar Azam surpassed Kohli in the ODI rankings, the debate was sparked yet again, with fans from the neighboring countries defending their respective captains…
While Pakistani fans claim that Babar is the better player because he is higher than Kohli in ODI and T20I batsman rankings, Indian fans claim that Babar has achieved the ranking by scoring against weaker teams and has a poor record against the top sides in international cricket.
SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia) countries are regarded as some of the toughest opponents and some of the most difficult countries to bat in, a true skill test of the batsman is judged by performing against such teams in their home conditions.
Kohli is considered to be one of the world’s best in the shortest format of the game. His record is impeccable in his home conditions, but it takes a dip in challenging conditions away from home, in SENA countries particularly.
Let’s have a look at the performances of Babar and Kohli in T20Is in SENA countries:
| Player | Innings | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | 100s | 50s |
| Babar Azam | 17 | 742 | 53.9 | 137.38 | 1 | 7 |
| Virat Kohli | 22 | 791 | 38.5 | 133.5 | 0 | 6 |
Let’s break down the performances in each of the countries:
Babar Azam:
| Country | Innings | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | 100s | 50s |
| Australia | 3 | 115 | 57.50 | 138.55 | 0 | 2 |
| England | 4 | 157 | 52.33 | 136.52 | 0 | 2 |
| New Zealand | 3 | 109 | 54.50 | 125.28 | 0 | 1 |
| South Africa | 7 | 361 | 51.57 | 149.17 | 1 | 2 |
Virat Kohli:
| Country | Innings | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | 100s | 50s |
| Australia | 10 | 451 | 64.42 | 144.55 | 0 | 5 |
| England | 5 | 180 | 45.00 | 133.33 | 0 | 1 |
| New Zealand | 4 | 105 | 26.25 | 131.25 | 0 | 0 |
| South Africa | 3 | 55 | 18.33 | 125.00 | 0 | 0 |