Babar Azam is slowly transforming from captain to leader like Virat Kohli: Rashid Latif

Karachi, December 11: Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif says current Pakistan skipper Babar Azam is showing signs of transforming into a "leader" from being just a "captain" just like his Indian counterpart Virat Kohli has done over the years.

Rashid believes that if Babar wanted to continue as captain for a long period of time in all three formats, he would have to learn from how Kohli had handled his captaincy responsibilities.

"I think Babar has to become a leader like Virat rather than just being a captain of the team," Rashid told a Pakistani YouTube channel.

"Virat has developed into a leader and in cricket and sports, when you are made the captain, you have to become a leader," Latif said. "...and by that, I mean you have to be respected on and off the field. You have to stand up for your players and you have to take the hard and out of box decisions," he said.

"You look at Virat today and he is a complete leader and his own stature as a batsman has also helped a lot. But you can see in the attitude of the Indian team and their selection, Virat has his say in everything," he added.

"I think Babar is also on the right path and I felt he had his input in the squad selected for the New Zealand tour. I think Babar because of his exceptional batting talents has the makings of a good leader.

"He may seem meek and an introvert but he is mentally very strong and has game awareness and you can see this in his batting."