Former Pakistan captain Babar Azam showered praise on rising star Saim Ayub following his match-winning performance in the recently concluded third ODI against South Africa.
Taking to Instagram, Babar shared a photo of the young opener, who scored his second century of the series, captioning it: 'Cheetah,' a nod to Ayub's swift and fearless style of play.
The 30-year-old, in a separate post on his social media platform, expressed his joy over Pakistan’s 3-0 series victory.
"Overcome with pure joy and pride," Babar wrote, celebrating the landmark achievement.
In the third match, Pakistan clinched a 36-run victory, successfully defending their total of 308/9.
Saim Ayub starred with a scintillating 101 off 94 balls, supported by half-centuries from Babar Azam (52) and Mohammad Rizwan (53).
Agha Salman added a quickfire 48 to propel Pakistan to a competitive total.
South Africa's chase was led by Heinrich Klaasen, who smashed 81 off 43 balls, and Corbin Bosch, who contributed 40 runs.
However, the hosts faltered and were bowled out for 271 in 42 overs.
Sufiyan Muqeem led the bowling attack with figures of 4/52, while Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah picked up two wickets each.
Mohammad Hasnain and Saim Ayub chipped in with one wicket apiece.
For his outstanding all-round performance which included two centuries 235 runs and two wickets Saim Ayub was named Player of the Match in the final ODI and Player of the Series as well.
This historic series win not only secured a 3-0 whitewash for Pakistan over South Africa but also etched their name in cricketing history as the first team to achieve this feat on South African soil.
Sohail Imran Sohail Imran is a senior reporter for Geo News.- Babar Azam
- Saim Ayub