Babar Azam takes Lanka Premier League 2023 by storm, videos show his mad following in Sri Lanka

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Babar Azam was in his element on Monday, bringing up his 77nd fifty in T20 cricket to help Colombo Strikers win their second match of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2023 by 27 runs at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.

The innings from the 28-year-old batter saw him score four boundaries and a six as Colombo Strikers posted 157/6 in 20 overs on a difficult batting surface where no other batter in the match could score 30-plus runs.

In reply, Kandy could manage only 130/8 after superb bowling efforts from Naseem Shah (2/19), Matheesha Pathirana (3/24) and Jeffrey Vandersay (2/32).

"Tried to build a partnership. The pitch was two-paced. It was tough to bat. I was trying to build a partnership. It was not an easy pitch, so tried to take it deep. There was extra bounce then I realised here we need proper batting till the 15th over and then we can charge. The rest of the boys played well," Babar Azam said after the match.

The Pakistan captain has emerged as the biggest star attraction in the Lanka Premier League (LPL) and several videos showing his massive fan following in Sri Lanka have emerged. In the videos, the right-hand batter could be seen waving to his fans, interacting with them and giving autographs.

"I have got lots of love. I wasn't expecting it but I have got lots of love in the 3-4 stadiums I have been here. It makes me very happy to get support in a foreign country. I make efforts to cater to the requests of the fans. It's not always possible but I do try," Babar humbly told a reporter.

Here are the videos and fan reactions to Babar Azam's first fifty in LPL 2023.