Babar Azam surpasses Rohit Sharma to claim elite T20I record
Babar Azam achieved the milestone while batting in the second T20I against England at Edgbaston.
Pakistan captain Babar Azam has surpassed Indian captain Rohit Sharma to become the second leading run-scorer in T20I cricket. Babar reached the milestone during the second T20I played between England and Pakistan at Edgbaston.
While it was not Babar's best day with the bat, his 32 off 26 balls was enough for him to go past Rohit Sharma in the list of leading run-scorers in T20Is. In T20Is, Rohit Sharma has scored 3974 runs at an average of 31.79 and a strike rate of 139.97. On the other hand, Babar Azam's current T20I records read 3987 runs at an average of 41.10 and a strike rate of 129.91.
While Babar has moved to the second spot, he is still behind Virat Kohli, who owns the top spot in this list with 4037 runs at an average of 51.75. All the three batters, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Babar Azam will be in action in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024.
List of top five run-scorers in T20I cricket
| S. No. | Name | Matches | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | Highest Score | Hundreds |
| 1 | Virat Kohli (India) | 117 | 4037 | 51,75 | 138.15 | 122* | 1 |
| 2 | Babar Azam (Pakistan) | 118 | 3987 | 41.10 | 129.91 | 122 | 3 |
| 3 | Rohit Sharma (India) | 151 | 3974 | 31.79 | 139.97 | 121* | 5 |
| 4 | Paul Stirling (Ireland) | 142 | 3589 | 27.60 | 135.43 | 115* | 1 |
| 5 | Martin Guptill (New Zealand) | 122 | 3531 | 31.81 | 135.70 | 105 | 2 |
Coming to the game, Babar Azam came to bat in the first over at No. 3 after the dismissal of Mohammad Rizwan for a duck. He started steadily with a boundary off Reece Topley.
Pakistan lost Saim Ayub soon after but Babar kept on rotating the strike. As the required run rate kept rising, Babar felt the need to score quick runs. In the first ball of the eighth over, he was trapped leg-before while trying to sweep offspinner Moeen Ali.
Left-hander Fakhar Zaman played beautifully for 45 runs off just 21 balls, hitting 5 fours and 3 sixes in the process. Zaman was also the top-scorer for the Men in Green. But Pakistan's middle order failed to put up a significant partnership. Iftikhar Ahmed and Imad Wasim scored some quick runs lower down the order, but Pakistan fell 23 runs short of the target, being all out for 160 in 19.2 overs.
Earlier, Jos Buttler maintained his excellent record against Pakistan to score 84 runs off just 51 balls. Will Jacks scored a quickfire 37 while batting at No. 3 to help England post a competitive 183-7 in 20 overs. Comeback man Jofra Archer finished England's innings with a four and a six off Mohammad Amir in the last over. Archer had a decenr outing with the ball as well, returning figures of 2-28 in 4 overs.
England lead the four-match T20I series 1-0 after the first match was washed out due to rain.
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