Pakistan's remarkable fourth innings by numbers

The Cricketer looks into the records to fall during the monster fourth innings between Pakistan and Australia in the second Test in Karachi

443-7 – sixth-highest fourth innings total

Pakistan posted 443 for 7 in the fourth innings to secure a draw against Australia, falling just seven runs short of their own highest total – 450 all out during a 39-run defeat against Australia in Brisbane in 2016.

Their total places sixth on the all-time list of fourth innings scores but is someway behind the record, a monstrous 654 for 5 scored by England against South Africa in March 1939.

It did, however, set a new fourth innings record for Karachi's National Stadium, surpassing the previous best of 315 for 9 set against Australia in 1994.

196 – Babar Azam

Not only was Babar Azam’s daddy hundred in Karachi his career-best Test knock – his previous high-score was 143 against Bangladesh in February 2020 – but it also broke the record for the highest fourth-innings score by a Pakistan batter. Younis Khan’s 171 not out against Sri Lanka in 2015 previously held the record.

And he didn’t stop there, also breaking Mike Atherton’s 26-year-old record for the highest fourth innings knock by a captain. Atherton scored 185 not out from 492 balls against South Africa in Johannesburg in December 1995.

^{Babar Azam and Abdullah Shafique enjoyed a lengthy third-wicket stand [Asif Hassan/Getty Images]}

425 – fourth-most balls faced in the fourth innings

Only three players have ever faced more balls than Azam in the fourth innings of a Test match – India’s Sunil Gavaskar (443) against England in 1979, England’s Herb Sutcliffe (462) against Australia in 1928, and, of course, Mike Atherton (492) against South Africa in 1995.

603 minutes – second-longest individual fourth innings

Azam’s stayed in the middle for a huge 603 minutes, falling 40 minutes short of (you’ve guessed it) Atherton’s record. The Englishman’s mammoth knock against South Africa (1995) lasted for 643 minutes.

228 – second-highest fourth innings partnership for Pakistan

Azam and Abdullah Shafique’s 228-run third-wicket stand is the second-highest in a fourth innings for Pakistan and the highest on home soil. Shan Masood and Younis Khan just kept hold of the record, having shared a 242-run stand against Sri Lanka in 2015.

524 balls – most balls faced by a fourth-innings partnership

While they didn’t break Pakistan’s fourth-innings run record, Azam and Shafique did break the record for the longest partnership in terms of number of balls faced, navigating 524 balls together. The previous record was held by India’s Deep Dasgupta and Rahul Dravid, who faced 500 deliveries for the second wicket against South Africa in 2001.

3 – number of male players to score centuries in all three formats while captain

In bringing up his century on day four, Azam became just the third male player to score a century across all three formats while captain, joining South Africa’s Faf du Plessis and Sri Lanka’s Tillakaratne Dilshan.