When was the last time Babar Azam scored a fifty in Test cricket?
Former Pakistan skipper Babar Azam has endured a horrid run with the bat in the ongoing two-match home Test series against Bangladesh. He finished the series without scoring a half-century.
His dismal form has popped up a question in the minds of fans - when did Babar last scored a Test fifty. The right-hander last scored a half-century in the red-ball format during the home series against New Zealand in Karachi in December 2022. Since then, he has gone 16 innings in Test cricket without a fifty.
The knock came in the first Test of a two-match series against the Blackcaps. Batting first in the series, Pakistan were in all sorts of trouble, reeling at 48-3, with all top three batters back in the hut. Babar, the then skipper of the team, held one end and played a marathon knock to pull his side out of the mud.
He stitched together a couple of decent partnerships with Sarfaraz Ahmed (86) and Salman Agha (103) to help the team to 438 in the first innings. Babar played 280 balls for his 161, smashing 15 boundaries and one six. It was his ninth century in red-ball cricket.
In response, New Zealand piled 612-9 before declaring, riding on Kane Williamson's unbeaten double century. The visitors took an 174-run lead in the first innings. Pakistan declared their second essay at 311-8, pressing for a result on the final day, but the Blackcaps showed no nerves to play out a draw.
The second Test at the same venue also finished without a result as the series ended 0-0.
How many runs did Babar Azam score in the two-match series against Bangladesh?
Relieved from captaincy duties, Babar Azam was expected to flourish with the bat, starting with the home series against Bangladesh. However, he flattered to deceive, aggregating only 64 runs across four innings.
Babar bagged a seven-ball duck in the first innings of the series opener before scoring 22 in the second as the Men in Green suffered a humilating 10-wicket defeat against the Bangla Tigers. He showed some improvement in the second Test, scoring 31 in the first essay but gave away his start once again.
The 29-year-old finished the series with 11 runs as Pakistan continue to fight to save the two-match series.