TRINIDAD: Babar Azam became only the third Pakistan captain to lead the men’s national team in 150 international matches during the second Test against West Indies on Sunday.
The 31-year-old recently returned as Pakistan’s Test captain, replacing Shan Masood ahead of the away Test tours of the West Indies and England.
Babar has now captained Pakistan in 150 internationals across all formats, joining an exclusive list headed by Imran Khan (187 matches). Misbah-ul-Haq is second with 151 matches.
The right-hander also ranks second on Pakistan’s all-format list for captaincy wins, having guided the side to 84 victories. Only Imran (89 wins) has more, while Misbah is third with 77.
Across his 150 matches as captain, Babar has recorded 84 wins, 51 defeats, two ties, four draws, and eight no-results, giving him a win percentage of 56%.
Most Matches as Pakistan captain
Imran Khan — 187 matches, 89 wins, 67 losses
Misbah-ul-Haq — 151 matches, 77 wins, 60 losses
Babar Azam — 150 matches, 84 wins, 51 losses
Former captain Wasim Akram is fourth on the list with 134 matches as skipper, followed by Inzamam-ul-Haq (119) and Sarfaraz Ahmed (100).
Babar returned to the Test captaincy with a record of 10 wins, seven defeats, and four draws from 22 matches during his first stint between 2020 and 2023.
Shan Masood succeeded him ahead of Pakistan’s tour of Australia in late 2023. Pakistan were whitewashed 3-0 in that series. Masood finished his tenure with four wins and 12 defeats in 16 Tests.
Babar’s captaincy journey began in October 2019 when he was appointed Pakistan’s T20I captain. He took over the ODI side in May 2020 before being named Test captain later that year.
He stepped down as Pakistan’s all-format captain in November 2023 following the team’s early exit from the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in India.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) reappointed him as white-ball captain in March 2024, but he resigned again in October the same year to focus on his batting and manage his workload.
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