WATCH: Babar Azam's hat-trick of 4s during PAK vs SA 1st Test

A moment of relief for Babar Azam and his fans. In the second innings of the ongoing Pakistan vs South Africa (PAK vs SA 1st Test) Test match, when the home team was struggling at the Gaddafi Stadium, it was Babar who played a useful knock on a tricky, turning track. During his 42-run innings, the right-handed batter smashed three boundaries in a row against South Africa spinner Senuran Muthusamy, who did well in both innings of the Test in Lahore.

In the first innings, the SA spinner took 6 wickets, and in the second innings, he picked up 5 scalps. Against an in-form spinner, on a spin-friendly wicket, it is never easy for a batter to perform swiftly. Batters with good technical skills and the ability to perform against spin or dry conditions are mostly capable of scoring some significant runs for Babar. Without any doubt, he has the required skill set to perform in such conditions.

The main concern was his form. For a long time, the Pakistan batting star has been out of form. Even in the first innings of the game, he was able to score only 23 off 48. In the next easy phase of the match, when most of the Pakistan cricket team batters struggled, Babar displayed some glimpses of his best. This time, his footwork was worth watching. When he smashed three back-to-back 4s against Senuran Muthusamy's spin, his footwork was brilliant.

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Three boundaries in a row for Babar Azam

Due to perfect footwork and a well-balanced body position, Azam made those moves easy to watch. After the first innings, the crowd at the Gaddafi stadium backed Babar heavily by cheering throughout his 72-ball innings. For every single run, fans applauded for the star batsman of Pakistan. Using the freshness of the track, Pakistan, batting first, scored 378 runs in the first innings. In the second innings, their batting unit collapsed for only 167 runs, which has made the competition more interesting.

After the end of Day 3, South Africa needs 226 runs to win the match with 8 wickets in hand.