KARACHI: Star batter and captain of Peshawar Zalmi Babar Azam added a new chapter to his career by producing a historic performance in T20 cricket.
In his latest outing, Babar scored an unbeaten 100 runs off just 52 balls, creating a unique record by playing only a single dot ball throughout his innings a first in T20 history for any batter facing 50 or more deliveries.
https://twitter.com/thePSLt20/status/2045922998453239838
The star batter smashed 4 sixes and 6 fours during his knock, maintaining exceptional control and consistency from start to finish.
https://youtu.be/WHcVTwRBvUs?si=J0NIZaU4A6wUfRQF
This century marks Babar Azam’s 12th in T20 cricket, placing him second on the list of players with the most centuries in the format.
https://twitter.com/ESPNcricinfo/status/2045919340239962612
Cricket analysts have hailed the innings as one of the most disciplined and efficient performances in modern T20 cricket, highlighting Babar’s ability to combine aggression with precision.
Earlier, Quetta captain Saud Shakeel chose to field first, but the decision did not work in their favor as Zalmi posted a massive total of 255 for 3 in 20 overs. The strong total was built on a big partnership between Babar Azam and Kusal Mendis.
Zalmi started quickly, with Mohammad Haris scoring 16 runs in a short innings as the team reached 30 runs in just 1.3 overs before he was dismissed by Alzarri Joseph.
After that, Kusal Mendis joined Babar Azam, and the two built a strong 135-run partnership for the second wicket.
Both players completed their half-centuries during this stand. Mendis was eventually dismissed by Usman Tariq after scoring 83 off 44 balls, including 10 fours and three sixes.
Babar then added 24 runs with Farhan Yousaf, who scored 19 off just eight balls. Later, Babar and Aaron Hardie put together an unbeaten 66-run partnership to finish the innings strongly.
Babar Azam completed his third PSL century on the last ball of the innings and remained not out on 100 from 52 balls, hitting six fours and four sixes. Aaron Hardie also contributed 26 runs from just 10 balls, including three sixes.
For Quetta Gladiators, Abrar Ahmed, Alzarri Joseph, and Usman Tariq managed to take one wicket each.
