Babar Azam second only to Gayle to hit 10 T20 centuries

COLOMBO: Pakistan star batter Babar Aram scripted history on Monday by becoming only the second batter to hit 10 centuries in T20 cricket.

The right-handed batter joined Chris Gayle in an exclusive club after hitting a match-winning hundred for Colombo Strikers against Galle Titans in Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2023.

The Pakistan skipper scored three 120 hundreds at the international level, two each in the Vitality Blast and National T20 Cup. He has also a hundred in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) for Peshawar Zalmi and another in a tour match against Leicestershire.

Babar Azam took his tally of T20 centuries to 10 with his maiden triple-digit score in the Lanka Premier League and also became only the fourth centurion in the tournament’s history.

Chris Gayle holds the record for most hundreds in the shortest format of the game – a humongous tally of 22 hundreds. Babar also became the first Asian batter to get to the milestone of 10 T20 centuries. India great Virat Kohli is second on the Asian list with 8 hundreds in the shortest format of the game.

Babar Azam hit 104 from just 59 deliveries as Colombo Strikers chased down 189 successfully in the LPL 2023 contest.

Strikers’ openers Babar and Pathum Nissanka scripted a solid start to the pursuit as they added 111 runs before Tabraiz Shamsi drew a much-needed breakthrough for the Titans by dismissing Nissanka.

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Nissanka scored an anchoring 54 off 40 deliveries, laced up with five boundaries and a six.

Babar Azam was then joined by Nuwanidu Fernando at the crease and the pair knitted a vital 55-run partnership for the second wicket.

The second-wicket stand was massively dominated by Babar while Fernando batted cautiously before falling to Shamsi in the 18th over. He could score eight off 13.

Despite Babar Azam’s blitz, the high-scoring encounter came right down to the wire with the Strikers needing 14 off the final over.

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Kasun Rajitha, set to defend 14, bowled a fuller delivery outside off and Babar Azam holed it straight to the long-off fielder.

He smashed eight boundaries and five sixes on his way to a 59-ball 104.

The Strikers, with their mainstay back in the hut, looked in deep trouble but Mohammad Nawaz smashed Rajitha for a six and a boundary to seal the deal for the Strikers with one ball to spare.

Shamsi led the bowling attack for the Titans with 2/27 while Rajitha made one scalp.