2013: A record making year for Pakistan's cricket

KARACHI: The year 2013 remained a good one for Pakistan’s cricket team, they won overall seven bilateral series including ODI and Test, which is the most they have won in a calendar year. Misbah ul Haq remained best Batsmen of the year while offspinner Saaed Ajmal, the best bowler, ARY News reported.

Earlier, in 2011, Pakistan had won six bilateral series in ODIs. The most series they have won in a year, bilateral or otherwise, is eight, in 2002, when they won six and were declared joint-winners of two other series.

Misbah ended the year with 1373 ODI runs, the most by any batsman. Mohammad Hafeez is second on that list. Hafeez's 1301 ODI runs in 2013 is the most he has scored in a year, and the second time in three years that he has scored more than 1000 in a year. He previously hit 1075 runs at 37.06 in 32 matches in 2011.

Seamer Junaid Khan took 13 wickets in the ODI series against Sri Lanka, which is the second-highest aggregate for a Pakistan bowler in a bilateral series, after Naved-ul-Hasan's 15 wickets against India in 2004-05. Naved-ul-Hasan, however, played one ODI more than Junaid's five in this series.

Junaid also equalled the second most wickets in a series for a left-arm quick. New Zealand's Geoff Allott and Australia's Mitchell Johnson lead this list with 14 wickets from seven ODIs.