Online Sports Desk
Pakistan batter Babar Azam achieved a major milestone in his international career on Sunday, October 18, as he became the fifth Pakistani cricketer to complete 16,000 runs across all three formats. The right-handed batter reached the landmark during Pakistan’s opening match against Sri Lanka in the ongoing ODI tri-series at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
Babar needed seven runs to reach the milestone before the start of the match. He achieved the feat during Pakistan’s innings after walking out to bat at No. 3 following the dismissal of opener Saim Ayub.
The 32-year-old reached the landmark in his 399th international innings, making him the third-fastest Pakistani batter to score 16,000 international runs. Mohammad Yousuf holds the record among Pakistani players, having reached the mark in 388 innings, followed by Javed Miandad, who took 398 innings.
Babar Azam joins Pakistan greats in elite list
With the achievement, Babar joined an elite group of Pakistani batters who have scored at least 16,000 international runs. The list includes Inzamam-ul-Haq, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf and Javed Miandad.
Inzamam remains Pakistan’s leading run-scorer in international cricket, having accumulated 20,541 runs in 495 matches. Younis follows with 17,790 runs, while Yousuf scored 17,134 runs during his international career. Miandad finished with 16,213 runs.
Babar reached the milestone in his 355th international match, having made his international debut for Pakistan in an ODI against Zimbabwe in May 2015.
Babar Azam’s International cricket record
Babar has scored runs across all three formats for Pakistan. According to the career figures provided, he has accumulated 4,771 runs in Test cricket, 6,626 in ODIs and 4,596 in T20 internationals.
His ODI record includes 20 centuries and 38 half-centuries, while he has registered nine centuries and 34 half-centuries in Test cricket. In T20Is, he has scored three centuries and 39 half-centuries. The milestone adds to Babar’s achievements in international cricket, where he has established himself as one of Pakistan’s leading batters across formats.
Pakistan begin ODI tri-series against Sri Lanka
Pakistan are hosting Sri Lanka and England in the ongoing ODI tri-series, which began on October 18. The competition features seven matches in a double round-robin format, with the top two teams advancing to the final.
The summit clash is scheduled to take place at Lahore’s Gaddafi stadium on October 31. Babar will be looking to build on the landmark innings and contribute to Pakistan’s campaign in the home tri-series.
