Babar Azam played a knock to remember for ages to help Pakistan draw a Test they were expected to lose as soon as Australia set the target. Azam missed his double century by four runs but managed to break a record that belonged to former England captain for over 26 years.
Azam now holds the record for the highest score by a captain in the fourth innings of a Test match. He broke England's Michael Atherton's record that was created against South Africa in November 1995. Atherton scored unbeaten 185 in Johannesburg to help his side draw the match.
Azam’s 196-run knock is also the seventh-highest score by a batter in a Test’s fourth innings. The record belongs to West Indies’ George Alphonso Headley, who scored 223 runs against England in 1930 which ended in a draw. It is also the second-highest score by an Asian batter in fourth innings. The Asian record belongs to Sunil Gavaskar, who scored 221 against England in 1979.
After two early wickets, Azam shared a 228-run partnership for the third wicket with Abdullah Shafique. This is the second-highest partnership in the fourth-innings of a Test in Asia. While Azam missed his double ton, Shafique missed his century by just four runs. The highest partnership record belongs to Shan Masood and Younis Khan, who shared a 242-run stand against Sri Lanka in 2015.
Babar’s 196 also helped Pakistan post a total of 443/7 while chasing 506. This is Pakistan's second-highest total while chasing a target in the format. Also, it is the fifth-highest total in a run chase overall.
“The plan was to bat session-by-session and build partnerships. It was a team effort, as others (Shafique and Rizwan) chipped in with useful contributions too. We took the onus and the main focus was to build partnerships right throughout the day. Rizwan was outstanding as he saved the Test for us eventually. We wanted to continue to bat in the same way (after the tea break) and we tried to be positive and play our shots. The team needed this knock, so I tried to bat for as long as I could,” the 27-year-old said in the post-match presentation ceremony.
