Babar Azam reaches international cricket milestone during Perth Test

Pakistan star batter, Babar Azam reached a significant milestone during the Perth Test’s third day against Australia on Saturday. 

The 29-year-old batsman became the fifth Pakistani to surpass 13,000 runs in international cricket. He holds an impressive average of 49.08, the highest among the top five batsmen. Across 301 innings, Azam has achieved 31 centuries and 81 half-centuries.

In terms of the highest run-scorers for Pakistan in international cricket, Inzamam-ul-Haq leads with 20,541 runs, followed by Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Javed Miandad, and Babar Azam.

However during the match, Babar fell victim to Australian all-rounder Mitchell Marsh, being dismissed after making 21 runs in the first session of the day. Prior to his dismissal, nightwatchman Khurram Shahzad was taken out by Pat Cummins after scoring seven runs.

When play resumed on the third day, Pakistan started their first innings at 132-2, having bowled out Australia for 487 on the previous day. Despite a solid start by Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq, Lyon’s dismissal of Shafique for 42 broke their partnership. Captain Shan Masood contributed 30 runs but was caught behind by Alex Carey off Mitchell Starc’s delivery.

Pakistan’s first innings ended at 271, trailing Australia by 271 runs, as Cummins confirmed Australia’s decision not to enforce the follow-on.

Imam-ul-Haq was the highest run-scorer for Pakistan, amassing 62 runs from 199 balls with four boundaries. While Shafique scored 42, Masood added 30 runs. Despite a promising start at 122-1, Pakistan lost their next nine wickets for 149 runs.