Babar Azam broke a few records en route to his fastest PSL century off 52 balls with only a single dot ball played in that unbeaten innings, first by any batter. It was one of the finest knocks by the Peshawar Zalmi captain against Quetta Gladiators.
Kusal Mendis also played a fluent knock at the other end, scoring 83, and putting up a 135-run partnership for the second wicket.
Babar continues to rewrite records in T20 cricket. He has become the fastest player to score 100 half-centuries in the format, getting there well before Virat Kohli. He has also gone past Kohli in total T20 hundreds, with 12 to his name, and reached 12,000 T20 runs quicker than both Kohli and Chris Gayle.
His partnership with Mendis was not just about scoring runs. It also marked Babar’s 47th century stand in T20s, putting him level with Kohli at the top of that list.
With a big score of 255 on the board, Peshawar Zalmi were the favourites. Quetta struggled right from the start and were eventually bowled out for 137.
Babar’s strong form has also lifted him high on the run charts this season. He has scored 401 runs in seven innings so far, making him the second-highest run-getter. The only player ahead of him is his team-mate Mendis, who leads the list with 413 runs. Their consistency at the top has been a major reason behind their team’s success at PSL this season.
Already the highest run-scorer in PSL history, Babar has crossed the 4,000-run mark in the tournament. He is now level with Kamran Akmal, Rilee Rossouw and Usman Khan for the most centuries in the league.
