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Pakistan star Babar Azam once again won the hearts of his fans as he smashed a brilliant century on Day 2 of the ongoing Galle Test against Sri Lanka.
Notably, the visitors were in deep trouble with 85/7 at one stage. Babar then partnered with tailenders and helped Pakistan stage an impressive comeback.
The Pakistan skipper stood his ground and smacked his seventh Test century to guide Pakistan to a total of 218 in reply to Sri Lanka’s 222 in the first innings. Babar scored 119 off 244 deliveries with the help of 11 fours and a couple of sixes.
Further, Babar also added another record to his name, as he surpassed Indian superstar Virat Kohli to become the fastest Asian to reach the 10,000 run mark in international cricket.
Babar scored his 10,000th run in his 228th innings, while Kohli had achieved the milestone in 232 innings. Overall, the Pakistan captain is the fifth fastest to reach the landmark and the fastest among the Asian cricketers.
Here is how Twitter reacted:
Innings break: Pakistan 218 all out in their 1st innings (Babar Azam 119, Prabath Jayasuriya 5/82). SL lead by 4 runs. #SLvPAK pic.twitter.com/DMOpLrFSnr
— Sri Lanka Cricket 🇱🇰 (@OfficialSLC) July 17, 2022
Master craftsman; Babar Azam superb once again👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻.
— Ian Raphael Bishop (@irbishi) July 17, 2022
👑 @babarazam258 on 🔝
Phenomenal consistency across formats 💪#SLvPAK | #BackTheBoysInGreen pic.twitter.com/oWVrS0rjh4
— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) July 17, 2022
Masterclass from Babar Azam on a track assisting spinners. Even while batting with Naseem Shah, he didn't lose his composure.
— Bharath Ramaraj (@Fancricket12) July 17, 2022
Hundred for Babar Azam, one of the finest knock ever, Pakistan was 85 for 7 and then captain smashed a brilliant hundred. pic.twitter.com/IP3s7OLeOH
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) July 17, 2022
Another special innings from Babar Azam #SLvPAK
— Andrew McGlashan (@andymcg_cricket) July 17, 2022
Sri Lanka had Pak on the mat but Babar Azam was not going to take such ignominy lying down. Marvellous century by the captain who rises in stature with every innings
— Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) July 17, 2022
Absolutely brilliant hundred by Babar Azam. Once again showing what a magnificent and skilful batter he is #SLvPAK #Cricket
— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) July 17, 2022
Highest batting average in Test cricket since January 2018 (minimum 20 innings):
59.04 – Babar Azam 🇵🇰
58.21 – Kane Williamson 🇳🇿
54.02 – Marnus Labuschagne 🇦🇺
52.36 – Usman Khawaja 🇦🇺
52.07 – Steve Smith 🇦🇺#SLvPAK— Nic Savage (@nic_savage1) July 17, 2022
A captain's knock from Babar Azam has ensured Pakistan are in the game going into day 3 🙌
Watch #SLvPAK LIVE on https://t.co/CPDKNxoJ9v with a Test Series Pass (in select regions) 📺#WTC23 | 📝 Scorecard: https://t.co/Zjbsh8Hg2c pic.twitter.com/vdjTbMDjdZ
— ICC (@ICC) July 17, 2022
What a fight back by Pakistan, captain's knock by Babar Azam, great resistance by Naseem Shah. They have brought Pakistan back into game.
— Faizan Lakhani (@faizanlakhani) July 17, 2022