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Pakistan vs Australia, 2nd Test: Babar Azam shatters records with marathon fourth-inning knock

The Pakistan captain notched up a cautious 196 runs off 425 deliveries in the fourth innings to help his side register a draw against Australia.

By Samrat Chakraborty | Mar 17, 2022 | 2 Min Read

Pakistan captain Babar Azam (196) made batting look easy in the fourth innings of the second Test against Australia at the National Stadium, Karachi on Wednesday. In doing so, Azam not only helped Pakistan recover from 21/2 to 249/3 to salvage a gritty draw against Australia, but also shattered multiple records.

Azam registered the highest score by any batter in the fourth innings in Test cricket with his cautious stay of 425 deliveries. He also surpassed former Pakistan captain and Test great Younis Khan (171) , who had notched up an unbeaten knock against Sri Lanka in 2015, to register the highest score by a Pakistan player in the fourth innings of a Test. It was also the highest score in the fourth innings by a Pakistan captain, surpassing Younis, who had scored an unbeaten 107 against India in Kolkata, 2007.

However, the prolific batter fell short by four runs, in his long-stay in the middle. It also made him the first Pakistan batter to face more than 400 balls in the fourth innings to add to his plethora of records.

Babar Azam says it was a ‘team effort’ to salvage a draw

Chasing a mammoth target of 506 runs, alongside Azam, opener Abdullah Shafique (96) played a crucial role as the duo forged a 228-run stand for the third wicket. Shafique, however, missed out on a century as he was sent packing by Australia pace-ace Pat Cummins in the 109th over of the innings.

Azam said that building partnership was a part of their agenda in the fourth innings and important contributions from his teammates helped them salvage a draw against Australia.

“The plan was to bat session-by-session and build partnerships. It was a team effort, as others (Shafique and Rizwan) chipped in with useful contributions too. We took the onus and the main focus was to build partnerships right throughout the day,” the Pakistan captain said in the post-match interview.

“Rizwan was outstanding as he saved the Test for us eventually. We wanted to continue to bat in the same way (after the tea break) and we tried to be positive and play our shots. The team needed this knock, so I tried to bat for as long as I could.”

The third and final Test is scheduled for Monday in Lahore.