PAK vs AUS: Babar Azam Surpass Viv Richards, Virat Kohli, Joe Root In This Milestone In ODI Cricket
Published - 30 Mar 2022, 02:51 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 01:06 AM
Pakistan skipper Babar Azam on Tuesday entered the record books during the first ODI match between Pakistan and Australia at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. Babar became the 15th player from his country to complete 4000 runs in One-Day International Cricket.
The Pakistan skipper scored 57 off 72 balls before he was trapped before the wicket by Australian leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson. Ahead of the first ODI, Babar was 15 runs away from reaching the milestone and he became the quickest Pakistan player to complete 4000 ODI runs in 82 innings.
Babar Azam becomes second-fastest player to complete 4000 ODI runs
Babar took one innings more than former South Africa batter Hashim Amla to achieve the feat. Amla completed his 4000 ODI runs during the second ODI against India in Durban in December 2013. However, in terms of matches, both Babar and Amla completed the milestone in their 84th ODI match.
Babar was quicker than West Indies batting great Viv Richards (88 innings), England Test captain Joe Root (91 innings), former Indian skipper Virat Kohli (93 innings) and Australian opener David Warner (93 innings) to reach 4000 ODI runs in fewer innings.
Pakistan lost to Australia in the first ODI
Coming to the match, Babar stitched 96 runs with opener Imam-ul-Haq before his dismissal. Pakistan were 166 for five wickets down with the likes of Mohammad Rizwan (10) and Iftikhar Ahmed (2) were back in the dugout.
But Imam continued his lone fight in the chase of 313, the left-hander reached the three-figure score and brought up his eighth ODI century. Imam smashed six boundaries and three sixes in his 96-ball 103, however, the Pakistan opener was cleaned up by Australian debutant Nathan Ellis in the 39th over.
Pakistan’s innings folded up very soon after Imam’s departure as the hosts were bowled out at 225 and Australia won by 88 runs to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. The second ODI between the two sides will be played on March 31 at the same venue.
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