Elite company! Babar Azam equals Steve Smith’s massive WTC record amid Pakistan’s top-order collapse vs Bangladesh originally appeared on Cricket News.
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KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- Babar Azam scores 68 on Test return aainst Bangladesh, equalling Steve Smith’s WTC fifty record.
- He becomes the first Asian batter to reach 20 half-centuries in WTC history.
- Pakistan lost the first Test and were docked eight points for a slow over-rate.
Babar Azam returns to Test cricket with a 68, equals Steve Smith’s WTC record
Babar Azam walked back into Test cricket and responded with a composed half-century that placed his name, Australia gerat Steve Smith, alongside one of the greatest red-ball batters of this generation.
In the opening fixture at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka, the visitors crumbled with the bat. The defeat was humiliating enough on its own, but the damage did not stop there.
Pakistan were also penalised eight points by the ICC for maintaining an unacceptably slow over-rate during the match, a double blow that sent them sliding down to eighth position on the World Test Championship standings.
Babar did not feature in the first Test at all. He was in good touch during the Pakistan Super League earlier in the year but picked up an injury that ruled him out of the series opener.
His absence sparked predictable debate back home, with some questioning the timing and nature of the fitness concern. However, all of that noise faded the moment he was named in the starting eleven for the second Test, as a direct replacement for opener Imam-ul-Haq.
While his teammates once again found Bangladesh’s pace bowlers difficult to handle, Babar looked a class apart. He accumulated 68 runs off 84 deliveries, striking ten boundaries.
This fifty was Babar’s 20th in World Test Championship cricket, placing him level with Australian great Steve Smith on the all-time list.
It was also his second half-century contribution in the current WTC cycle, having previously managed just one fifty across four innings during the series against South Africa. What makes the milestone particularly significant is that Babar becomes the first batter from Asia to reach 20 half-centuries in WTC history.
Most half-centuries in WTC history
Only Marnus Labuschagne and Joe Root sit above Babar and Smith on this list, with 24 and 22 half-centuries respectively.
| Player | Country | 50+ Scores |
|---|---|---|
| Marnus Labuschagne | Australia | 24 |
| Joe Root | England | 22 |
| Babar Azam | Pakistan | 20* |
| Steve Smith | Australia | 20 |
| Zak Crawley | England | 20 |
How was Babar Azam dismissed against Bangladesh?
The innings came to an end when Nahid Rana returned for a second spell and broke a partnership that had been building steadily between Babar and Salman Ali Agha.
The pacer varied his pace, and Babar mistimed his shot to mid-on. Musfiqur Rahim made no mistake in catching it.
Soon, Pakistan crumbled like a pack of cards and were sent packing for just 232 runs in the first innings.
Rana and Taijul Islam were the star performers for Bangladesh with three wickets each.
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