Babar Azam admits 'tough time' after breaking century drought for Pakistan
Babar Azam says he is grateful for all the support he has received after breaking his century drought for Pakistan in the second ODI against Sri Lanka.
Babar Azam ODI gameThe 31-year-old went 800 days and 83 innings without a hundred in international cricket before an unbeaten 102 helped Pakistan to a series-clinching win in Rawalpindi.
The milestone also tied Babar with Saeed Anwar at the top of the ODI hundreds list for Pakistan.
"The amount of support I got from my fans, not just in Islamabad but everywhere, was great," Babar said. "I got support everywhere in Pakistan and it gave me a huge boost.
"The fans, they never deserted me in my hard times. It's in those hard times that you work out who your true allies are."
The middle-order batter's last century in international cricket came in August 2023 and he reflected on how his teammates helped against Sri Lanka as they chased a target of 289.
"I got starts in the previous series but I couldn't convert them into big runs," he said. "When our innings began, we wanted to build a partnership.
"When Fakhar (Zaman) and I were playing, I was giving Fakhar the strike as much as possible, because he's a player who can change a game. The longer he's out there, the other team's in pressure.
"Then Rizi (Mohammad Rizwan) and I were planning on playing according to the situation and doing what was required. We played according to that and built our partnership. I was backing my strengths and had confidence in myself."