Pakistani batsman Babar Azam achieved a major milestone on Saturday, reaching the 15,000-run mark in international cricket.
Babar achieved the milestone during the third ODI and final ODI of the three-match series against South Africa, on the road here at the Iqbal Stadium, when he worked Bjorn Fortuin for a single towards the wide halfway line to score his 23rd run.
The single took his run tally in international cricket to 15,000, making the 31-year-old only the fifth Pakistani to reach the milestone, joining Inzamam-ul-Haq, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf and Javed Miandad.
Notably, former captain Inzamam tops the list of most international runs by Pakistani batsmen with 20,541 in 547 innings, followed by Younis with 17,790, Yousuf with 17,134 and Miandad with 16,213.
Most international runs for Pakistan
Inzamam-ul-Haq – 20,541 runs in 547 innings
Younis Khan – 17,790 runs in 491 innings
Mohammad Yousuf – 17,134 runs in 426 innings
Javed Miandad – 16,213 in 407 innings
Babar Azam – 15,004 runs in 370 innings
Notably, Babar could not convert his decent start with the bat into a big blow and had an agonizing end to his stay at the crease as he was run out after scoring 27 off 32 deliveries, comprising five boundaries.
His dismissal came at a crucial time as Pakistan were recovering from a dismal start that saw left-handed opener Fakhar Zaman dismissed for the second time in a row.
Meanwhile, when this story was filed, the Green Shirts were 73/2 in 13 overs, with opener Saim Ayub and wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan unbeaten on 39 and five respectively.
The home side needed 71 runs in 37 overs with eight wickets in hand to win the three-match ODI series against South Africa 2-1.
