Peshawar Zalmi captain Babar Azam has created history in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) during the second match of season nine against Quetta Gladiators at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
The 29-year-old has created history as he is the first batter to score 3000 runs in PSL. No other batter has even crossed 2500+ runs.
In 80 innings, Babar has scored 3004 runs at an average of 44.83. He has 29 fifties and a century to his name.
Most runs in PSL
Babar Azam: 3004
Fakhar Zaman: 2381
Shoaib Malik: 2082
Babar's 68 went in vain as Quetta Gladiators defeated Peshawar Zalmi by 16 runs.
Earlier, Jason Roy and Saud Shakeel’s brilliant opening stand propelled Quetta Gladiators to post a mammoth 206-5.
Quetta Gladiators were invited to bat first and their new opening pair of Jason Roy and Saud Shakeel started their PSL 9 campaign brilliantly.
Roy hit Luke Wood for the four on the first ball to kick things off before Shakeel also hit a boundary to get runs from the first over.
Shakeel was almost dismissed in the next over as Saim Ayub caught a low catch at backward point, but the third-umpire declined the appeal, giving the left-hand batter a lifeline.
Both batters gained momentum gradually and turned the game on its head with regular boundaries to reach the 100-run mark in ten overs.
Roy raised his half-century in 33 balls with a six over deep midwicket off Dan Mousley, meanwhile, Shakeel reached the landmark in 36 balls.
They continued the onslaught but Wood finally broke the 157-run partnership as Shakeel ballooned the ball in the air, only to be caught by Babar Azam at mid-on.
Shakeel departed after scoring a brilliant 74 off 47, laced with ten boundaries, including four sixes.
Gladiators’ skipper Rilee Rossouw joined the party and hit the six off the first ball, followed by a boundary two balls later, but Mohammad Zeeshan castled him in the next over to end his brief stay.
Roy was removed by Salman Irshad in the 18th over with 185 runs on the board after playing a clinical knock of 75 runs from 48 balls, featuring nine boundaries and two sixes.
Sherfane Rutherford played a 20-run cameo off 13 balls before getting out in the last over, followed by Mohammad Wasim who scored a boundary and departed on the next ball.
Khawaja Nafay (6) hit the last ball for four to lift the team’s total to 206 in their allocated 20 overs.
Irshad led the bowling charts for the Peshawar Zalmi with figures of 3-38, while Wood and Zeeshan contributed with one wicket each.
While chasing, Babar and his opening partner Saim Ayub went to a great start, scoring 90 runs. But the runout proved costly for the Zalmi.
Along with Babar's 68, Saim hit 42 runs. Tom Kohler-Cadmore (18), Rovman Powell (17) and Dan Mousley (11) made little contributions were it was not too much to cross the line.
Mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed took two wickets, while Mohammad Wasim, Mohammad Hasnain and Mohammad Amir picked one.
- Babar Azam
