Stats: Babar Azam records highest score by a captain in the fourth innings of Test
Can Babar Azam go on and become Pakistan's greatest batter in the Test format?
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Pakistan captain Babar Azam shattered a flurry of records on the fifth and final day of the second Test match against Australia at the National Stadium in Karachi. He registered the most runs by a skipper in the fourth innings of Test cricket as he played brilliant innings of 196 runs off 425 deliveries. Babar surpassed Michael Atherton’s score of 185* which the English player registered against South Africa in Johannesburg 27 years back in 1995. Former New Zealander Bevan Congdon is third on the chart for scoring 176 against England in 1973.
Highest scores by captains in the fourth innings of Tests:
| Captains | Team | Opposition | Runs | Venue | Year |
| Babar Azam | Pakistan | Australia | 196 | Karachi | 2022 |
| Michael Atherton | England | South Africa | 185* | Johannesburg | 1995 |
| Bevan Congdon | New Zealand | England | 176 | Nottingham | 1973 |
| Don Bradman | Australia | England | 173* | Leeds | 1948 |
| Ricky Ponting | Australia | England | 156 | Manchester | 2005 |
| Graeme Smith | South Africa | England | 154* | Birmingham | 2008 |
| Brian Lara | West Indies | Australia | 153* | Bridgetown | 1999 |
| Ricky Ponting | Australia | South Africa | 143* | Sydney | 2006 |
| Virat Kohli | India | Australia | 141 | Adelaide | 2014 |
| Wally Hammond | England | South Africa | 140 | Durban | 1939 |
Babar showed all his class and composure to play one of the best Test innings, especially in the fourth and final innings of a match. With his solid technique, the Pakistani skipper kept frustrating the Australian bowlers with his innings which included 21 delightful fours. Chasing a mammoth target of 506, Babar firstly shared 228 runs partnership with Abdullah Shafique off 524 deliveries. They both achieved the second-best fourth innings partnership for Pakistan. The duo entered the record books for scoring the highest fourth-innings partnership in Tests in Pakistan.
Babar also surpassed Younis Khan for amassing the most runs in the fourth innings by a Pakistani player. Younis notched up an unbeaten 171 against Sri Lanka in Pallekele in the year 2015. Saleem Malik occupies the third spot in this list for scoring 155 against Sri Lanka in Colombo (SSC) in 1997. On a day where Babar shattered records after records, he also scripted his highest score in Test cricket. His previous best was a knock of 143 against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi two years back in 2020.
Babar Azam faced the most balls for Pakistan in the fourth innings of the Test
The elegant and class-personified Babar also broke another record of facing the most balls by a Pakistani in the last innings of Test. Babar in his classy knock faced 425 deliveries to amass 196 runs. The record was previously held by veteran Shoaib Malik who faced 369 balls to score 148* against Sri Lanka in Colombo (SSC) in 2006.
The star Pakistani batter also achieved the highest individual Test score (196) by a Pakistan cricketer in the fourth innings in Pakistan. He went past Inzamam-ul-Haq’s score of 138* which the former batter mustered against Bangladesh in Multan in 2003. Sensational 27-years old Babar also brought up the highest score in the final innings of the match against Australia. He surpassed Sri Lankan legend Kumar Sangakkara who had smashed 192 runs against the Aussies in Hobart in 2007.
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