RAWALPINDI: Pakistan’s wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan is close to breaking a significant T20I record, currently held by teammate Babar Azam and Indian star batter Virat Kohli, during the upcoming New Zealand series.
Kohli and Azam are the joint-fastest to score 3000 runs in T20I cricket, taking 81 innings each, followed by Australia’s Aaoron Finch who took 98 innings.
However, Rizwan needs only 19 runs in his next two innings to become the fastest to reach the milestone. He has scored 2,981 runs in 78 innings so far.
Meanwhile, Babar Azam is closing in on Virat Kohli’s record for the most runs in T20I cricket.
Azam has scored 3,698 runs in T20I cricket and is third among the highest run-scorers in the format.
Kohli tops the list with 4,037, followed by his teammate Rohit Sharma, who has amassed 3,974 runs.
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Azam needs 340 runs in five games to become the highest-scorer as well as the second batter to surpass the 4000-run mark in T20I cricket.
For the unversed, Pakistan will host New Zealand for a five-match T20I series, scheduled to run from April 18.
Rawalpindi’s Pindi Cricket Stadium will host the opening three T20Is between Pakistan and New Zealand on 18, 20 and 21 April before action shifts to Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium where the last two matches will be played on 25 and 27 April.
Pakistan squad
Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saim Ayub, Usman Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Azam Khan (wk), Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Amir, Abbas Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, Fakhar Zaman, Irfan Khan Niazi, Usama Mir, Zaman Khan
Reserves: Haseebullah, Mohammad Ali, Agha Salman, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Wasim Jr.
New Zealand squad
Michael Bracewell (c), Mark Chapman, Josh Clarkson, Jacob Duffy, Dean Foxcroft, Ben Lister, Cole McConchie, Jimmy Neesham, Will O’Rourke, Tim Robinson, Ben Sears, Tim Seifert (WK), Ish Sodhi, Tom Blundell, Zak Foulkes.
Pakistan vs New Zealand T20I series schedule
April 18 — 1st T20I, Rawalpindi
April 20 — 2nd T20I, Rawalpindi
April 21 — 3rd T20I, Rawalpindi
April 25 — 4th T20I, Lahore
April 27 — 5th T20I, Lahore
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