Babar Azam recently became just the fifth Pakistani cricketer to score 15,000 runs across all international formats, a milestone he achieved during the third ODI against South Africa at Iqbal Stadium,
Faisalabad. But his lack of form continues as Pakistan started on a winning note against Sri Lanka.
The 31-year-old amassed this remarkable total in his 329th international match, reaching 15,033 runs at an impressive average of 45.46, including 31 centuries and 104 half-centuries with a highest score of 196.
This accomplishment places Babar in elite company alongside Pakistan's greats-Inzamam-ul-Haq, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, and Javed Miandad-who had all surpassed the 15,000-run mark in international cricket. Notably, Babar reached this milestone faster than any of these legends, achieving it in just 370 innings compared to the 400-550 innings taken by others. This underscores his consistency and brilliance across Tests, ODIs, and T20Is.
Babar's milestone innings in the third ODI was 27 runs off 32 balls, but he was unfortunately run out while attempting a third run with teammate Saim Ayub against bowler Bjorn Fortuin in the 11th over. Despite his dismissal, Babar's performance has solidified his status as one of Pakistan's modern greats, and his career trajectory continues to shine.
But in the match against Sri Lanka, Babar equalled Virat Kohli for a humbling record. He was dismissed for 29 runs in the first match, thus now going 83 international innings without a century, same as Kohli.
