Pakistan’s star batter Babar Azam is on verge of achieving a historic milestone as his team faces South Africa in the first T20I on Tuesday, October 28, in Rawalpindi.
The former Pakistan captain is just nine runs away from breaking a major T20 International record held by India’s Rohit Sharma.
Highest run-scorer in T20Is
Even if Babar scores in single digits, he will surpass Rohit’s tally of 4,231 runs and become the highest run-scorer in T20I history.
Currently, Babar has 4,223 runs in 128 matches, while Rohit has accumulated 4,231 runs in 159 matches. The list is followed by Virat Kohli (4,188 runs), Jos Buttler (3,869 runs), and Paul Stirling (3,710 runs).
In addition, if Babar scores 120 runs in the three-match T20 series, he will join the elite list of players with 15,000 international runs for Pakistan. At present, he has 14,880 runs in 364 innings across 323 matches, making him the fifth-highest run-getter for his country.
Pakistan’s T20I squad vs South Africa: Salman Agha (captain), Abdul Samad, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jr., Mohammad Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Khan (wk), Usman Tariq.
Babar Azam’s comeback to T20 Internationals
Babar Azam is set to make a highly anticipated comeback to T20 International cricket as Pakistan take on South Africa in the opening match of the three-game series in Rawalpindi on Tuesday, October 28.
The former Pakistan captain, who was earlier left out of the T20I squad alongside Mohammad Rizwan, also missed the 2025 Asia Cup, where Pakistan endured a disappointing campaign with three defeats to India, including one in the final.
After the team’s inconsistent performances in recent months, the selectors have turned back to experience, recalling Babar to strengthen the batting lineup. The Rawalpindi clash will mark Babar’s first T20I appearance of the year, as he looks to make a strong statement on his return.
