Pakistan captain Babar Azam rewrote history by breaking the record for the most number of fours in men's T20I history.
During Pakistan's thrilling win in the final over against New Zealand in the fifth T20I in Lahore on April 27, Babar played a splendid knock of 69 off 44 balls, which helped Pakistan's stalwart batter break the record for most fours in men's T20I. In his effortless display with the bat, Babar struck six fours before Ben Sears castled him with a 145kph searing yorker.
With a tally of 409 fours in 107 innings, Babar eclipsed Ireland's experienced batter Paul Stirling's record of 407 in 136 innings. Babar and Stirling are the two players who have managed to cross the 400 mark in the history of men's T20I cricket.
Virat Kohli comes close to the duo with 361 fours in 109 innings, followed by skipper Rohit Sharma with 359 fours in 143 innings.
On a tricky surface, Babar played a significant role in propelling Pakistan to a competitive total of 178/5. In the second innings, Shaheen Shah Afridi left the New Zealand batters baffled with his remarkable four-over spell. His figures of 4/30 significantly swung the momentum in Pakistan's favour. He made his presence felt right at the beginning of New Zealand's 179-run chase. On the fifth ball of the first over, Shaheen deceived Tom Blundell and knocked over the bails off his stumps. New Zealand regrouped after the early blow and managed to make a comeback in the game.
Shaheen turned the flow of the game yet again by claiming two wickets in consecutive deliveries. The Blackcaps failed to regroup after that point as Pakistan went on to seal a 7-run win to level the five-match T20I series on 2-2.
After the conclusion of the New Zealand series, Pakistan will tour England for a four-match T20I series which will kick off on May 22 to bolster their preparation for the T20 World Cup..
