After the retirement of Misbah ul Haq and Younis Khan, Pakistan has found the most reliable batting pair in Muhammad Rizwan and Babar Azam across the three formats. The batting duo was absolutely at the peak of their powers during the entire 2021, breaking multiple batting records.
Here we will take a look at all the records both Babar Azam and Muhammad Rizwan broke. First of all, lets take a look at all the records Pakistan’s wicket-keeper batter broke:
First player to score 2000 T20 runs in a calendar year
Muhammad Rizwan concluded the year 2021 by creating history. He became the first player ever to cross the 2,000 runs mark in T20 cricket in a calendar year. He scored 2,036 runs at an average of 56.55 and a strike rate of 132.03 in 45 innings.
Most Sixes and Boundaries in T20Is in an year
Muhammad Rizwan’s abilitiy to play big shots has always been questioned. However, the wicketkeeper batter proved everyone wrong as he became the leading six-hitter in T20Is in 2021. He hit a total of 42 sixes, one more than Martin Guptill. Furthermore, he also hit 119 boundaries, becoming the first player ever to hit more than 100 fours in a calendar year.
Most 50+ Scores in T20Is
The right handed batsman scored 13 50+ in the calendar year, becoming the first player to do it more than 10 times. Skipper Babar Azam scored 9 fifties and a hundred.
Equaled Sachin Tendulkar’s most Player-of-the-Series Awards record
Muhammad Rizwan wrote his name right at the top along with Sachin Tendulkar with most player-of-the-series awards. He won the best player of the series award six times. He was named player-of-the-series awards four times in T20Is and two times in test cricket.
Most Dismissals by a Wicket-Keeper in T20s
The wicketkeeper batter was as good behind the stumps as he was in front of the wickets. He broke MS Dhoni’s record of most dismissals behind the stumps as he helped sent 47 batters back to the pavilion. The former Indian skipper had done it 39 times in 2016.
Now, lets talk about Babar Azam’s list of records in 2021.
Number One in white ball cricket
The Pakistani skipper had another great year as he finished the number one batter in both T20s and one day internationals. He scored 939 runs in T20Is and 405 runs in ODIs. It happened only for the second time that a batter finished the year at number one in T20s and ODIs. Before this, only Ricky Ponting had done this.
Only Player in ICC Top 10 in all the three formats
Babar Azam being the only player to be ranked among the top 10 across all the formats speaks volumes of his consistency.
Highest Run scorer in T20Is for Pakistan
The right handed batter snatched the title of Pakistan’s highest run scorer in T20s from former captain Muhammad Hafeez. The Pakistan’s all-format captain has now scored 2,620 runs at an average of 45.17 and a strike rate of 129.12 in 73 matches. On the other hand, Mohammad Hafeez has 2,514 runs in 119 matches for Pakistan.
Leading run scorer in T20 World Cup 2021:
Babar Azam made most of his experience in the UAE conditions as he scored the most runs in the T20 world cup held there. The flamboyant batter scored 303 runs at an average of 60.60 and a strike rate of 126.25 in 6 innings.
Most Successful Captain
Babar Azam showed great signs of leadership as he led the Pakistan cricket team to eight victories out of seven in red ball cricket, having the highest win percentage. Under the leadership of Babar Azam, the Men in Green beat their opposition 20 times, becoming the first team ever to win 20 T20Is in a single year.
Fastest to 1,000 T20I runs as a captain
It only took Babar Azam 26 innings to reach 1000 runs in T20s, breaking Virat Kohli’s record of fastest 1,000 T20I runs as a captain. The Indian skipper did it in 30 innings. The Pakistani skipper is only the ninth captain to score a thousand runs in T20I cricket.
Most 50+ scores by a captain in T20I cricket
Babar Azam once again surpassed his Indian counterpart as he became the player with most 50+ scores as a captain in the shorter format of the game. Azam now has 16 fifty plus scores, including 15 fifties and a hundred.
Babar and Rizwan as a batting pair
The batting duo of Babar Azam and Muhammad Rizwan has been the most reliable in international cricket at the moment. Here are some of the records they created as a batting pair:
Most century partnerships
Babar and Rizwan gave Pakistan some great starts at the top of the batting order. They were responsible for as many 6 century partnerships, which is the most by a batting pair in the history of shorter format of the game.
Highest opening partnership in the history of T20 World Cup
Babar and Rizwan’s magnificent 152 runs stand against arch-rivals helped Pakistan register its first ever world cup win against India. This was also the highest opening stand in T20 World Cup history.
Most century partnerships while batting second
The two batters handled pressure well. Its evident from the fact that out of their six hundred runs partnerships, three came while batting second.
First Pair to Score 1,000+ Runs
The two were outstanding together as they became the first batting pair ever to score more than 1,000 runs in an year. They scored 1,380 runs at an average of 57.50 in 25 innings batting together.
Most Runs in their first T20 World Cup
Babar Azam and Muhammad Rizwan’s lethal batting combination made Pakistan an unstoppable force in the T20 world cup in UAE. It was the first time the two were participating in the mega event. They broke the record of most runs in their maiden tournament. Babar Azam and Muhammad Rizwan scored 303 and 281 runs respectively in the tournament. This record was previously held by Australian legend, Matthew Hayden who had scored 265 runs in the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007.
Source: ProPakistani
What are your views on this? Share in the comments bar below.
BABARXRIZWAN
SIMPLY OUTSTANDING, KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN AND NEED TO DO MUCH BETTER – VERY BEST OF LUCK.