Babar Azam reaches remarkable milestone in third ODI against South Africa
FAISALABAD: Pakistan’s batting maestro Babar Azam reached yet another major career landmark on Saturday, becoming the fifth player from the country to cross 15,000 international runs.
The right-hander accomplished the feat during the third and final ODI against South Africa at the Iqbal Stadium, when he nudged Bjorn Fortuin for a single towards mid-on to move to 23. That run took his overall tally to 15,000 across formats — a milestone only previously achieved by Inzamam-ul-Haq, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, and Javed Miandad.
Among Pakistan’s top run-getters, Inzamam remains well ahead with 20,541 runs in 547 innings, followed by Younis (17,790 in 491 innings), Yousuf (17,134 in 426 innings), and Miandad (16,213 in 407 innings). Babar now joins the elite club with 15,004 runs in 370 innings, achieving the mark faster than any of the names above.
However, the 31-year-old couldn’t turn his promising start into a substantial innings, falling short after scoring 27 off 32 balls, which included five boundaries. His unfortunate run-out came at a time when Pakistan were rebuilding their innings following Fakhar Zaman’s second consecutive duck.
At the time of his dismissal, Pakistan had reached 73 for 2 in 13 overs, with Saim Ayub (39) and Mohammad Rizwan (5) steadying the chase. The hosts required just 71 more runs in 37 overs to wrap up the series 2-1 against South Africa.
