KARACHI – Pakistan skipper Babar Azam achieved another milestone with his stellar performance in the first Test against New Zealand at the National Stadium Karachi on Monday.
The 28-year-old smashed 161 and still on the crease. As he made 90th run, he became the top Test score of the calendar year 2022, surpassing England player Joe Root.
The England batsman made 1,098 runs in 27 Test innings at an average of 45 while Babar surpassed him by playing only 16 innings.
He has also become the only player to hit most fifty-run score in Test cricket in 2022. He smashed 11 scores of 50 or more during this year.
Earlier in the day, the Pakistan’s captain created history for the most runs in a calendar year by a Pakistani batter across all formats.
Black Caps gave a tough time to Pakistani squad in the first Test; however Pakistani flamboyant batter Babar Azam slammed a half-ton before the lunch.
Skipper aggregated 2,442 runs, outclassing Mohammad Yousuf’s record of 2435 runs in 2006. He also smashed other records with 735 runs in T20Is and 679 in ODI cricket this year.
The star player also equalled Sri Lankan cricket great Sangakkara’s record of most 50-plus scores, 25, in a calendar year. The 26-year-old has scored seven centuries and 18 half-tons in international cricket this year.
Lately, Babar moved past Steven Smith and only behind Marnus Labuschagne in the rankings for Test batters.
Pakistan was 317-5 as the first day concluded with Babar Azam and Salman Ali Agha on the crease.
