Pakistan’s star batsman Babar Azam finally ended his 807-day century drought with a winning set in the second ODI against Sri Lanka on Friday, November 14 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi. Babar scored an unbeaten 102 (119) with eight fours to help his side chase down a target of 289 in 48.2 overs to win the match by eight wickets.
It was Babar’s first century in 84 innings in international cricket, with his previous one coming against Nepal on 30 August during the 2023 Asia Cup. Since then, Babar has crossed the fifty-run mark 20 times, but has never been able to reach the elusive three-figure milestone.
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However, after completing his 20th ODI century, he finally took a breather and acknowledged the support of the crowd who chanted his name non-stop. With his hundred, he also registered the most credited century for Pakistan in ODIs, along with Saeed Anwar.
Babar needed just 136 innings to reach 20 centuries in the 50-over format, making him the third fastest to the landmark after Hashim Amla (108 innings) and Virat Kohli (133 innings). It was also his eighth century on home soil, the most by any Pakistani batsman, surpassing Mohammad Yousuf (7).
Babar came to the crease after a solid 77-run opening partnership between Saim Ayub and Fakhar Zaman off 58 balls. He started his innings cautiously, rotating his strike early and hitting his first boundary after 23 balls. He went on to complete his half-century off 68 deliveries and was involved in a landmark 100-run stand off 127 balls with Fakhar Zaman (78 off 93) for the second wicket.
Babar then featured in an unbeaten 112-run partnership with Mohammad Rizwan (51 off 54) for the third wicket as he completed his century off 115 deliveries. Their massive stand saw Pakistan take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series, with the final ODI to be played at the same venue on Sunday, November 16.
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Issued by:
Rishabh Beniwal
Published on:
November 14, 2025
