Pakistan’s wicket-keeper batter, Mohammad Rizwan, has been in sublime form over the past year and his transformation in the shortest form of the game has been nothing short of incredible. Rizwan has piled on the runs in T20Is and has broken multiple batting records this year.
The 29-year old scored yet another exceptional half-century against Namibia in the ongoing 2021 T20 World Cup and helped Pakistan qualify for the semi-finals of the tournament for the first time since 2012.
The gritty batter broke yet another batting record during his innings against Namibia. He became the first-ever player to score more than 900 runs in T20Is in a calendar year. No other player has scored more than 748 runs in a calendar year. Rizwan can manage to cross the 1,000 run barrier if he continues his terrific form.
Rizwan has also scored 1,651 runs in T20s in the calendar year and has become the second-highest run-scorer in the format in one year. Rizwan surpassed fellow opening batter, Babar Azam, and Indian captain, Virat Kohli, who had scored 1,607 and 1,614 runs in a calendar year respectively.
The opening batter is just four runs away from breaking the record for most runs in a year in the T20s. The record is currently held by West Indian legend, Chris Gayle, who amassed 1,665 runs in 2015. With Pakistan scheduled to play at least two more matches in the T20 World Cup, Rizwan has a high chance of breaking the record.
Rizwan also surpassed Virat Kohli for the highest batting average in T20Is (minimum 1,000 runs). Rizwan’s unbeaten knock of 79 against Namibia took his career average to 52.66 while Kohli’s career average in T20Is is 52.01.
Source: Pro Pakistani