The performance of openers has always played a vital role in all formats in the game of cricket, especially in the limited overs games. If the openers provide a solid and aggressive start, the middle order can chase or set a big total.

Pakistan cricket team is lucky to have Babar Azam and Muhammad Rizwan. Both have been the most successful openers in the Twenty20 Internationals in recent months.

With their consistent and steady performances, they are breaking T20I records one after another: most century partnerships ever, most runs as batting partners in a calendar year, most T20I runs in a calendar year, most scores of 50 or more in T20Is as captain and most runs after the first 60 innings.

During the opening game of the recent tri-series, Rizwan with his innings of 78 runs off 50 balls added more T20 records to his credit. He took his overall T20 runs tally in the calendar year 2022 past 1500 runs. Last year, he had scored 2036 T20 runs.

He is only the third batter in the world to have scored 1500 or more T20 runs in a calendar year twice. The other two are Chris Gayle and Babar Azam.

The wicketkeeper batsman has also surpassed England’s Jos Buttler in the list of players scoring most runs as designated wicketkeeper in T20Is.

This year on September 22 at the National Stadium in Karachi, Babar and Rizwan against England set the highest partnership ever in a run-chase in T20Is by scoring 203 runs. It was the highest successful chase in T20 history without losing a wicket.

Babar and Rizwan have had five 150-plus stands in T20Is. No other pair has even one for Pakistan. Their five stands of 150-plus runs are also the most by any pair in all T20 cricket.

Babar and Rizwan have also become the first opening pair to score 1000-plus runs in a calendar year. They scored 1,041 runs in 2021 in 17 partnerships.

Rizwan got the reward of his consistent performances as he reclaimed the top spot in the T20I batsmen rankings. He is on top of the ICC T20I batsmen rating with 853 points while Babar stands 3rd with 808.

Rizwan is the first player to score ten fifties in T20Is in a calendar year (2021). He has three-figures across all formats for Pakistan.

Rizwan also surpassed India captain Virat Kohli and Babar when he scored the most 1,651 runs last year. Kohli scored 1,614 while Azam accumulated 1,607 in a year. Rizwan was only four runs behind Gayle’s 1,665 runs which he scored in 2015.

Moreover, Rizwan also surpassed Kohli’s highest T20I career averages (minimum 1,000 runs scored). Rizwan is currently averaging 52.66. This is more than all the 73 batsmen who have at least scored 1,000 T20I runs. His 13 T20I scores of fifty-plus runs this year is also a record.

The wicket-keeper batsman in 72 T20I matches has scored 2,426 runs, averaging 52.73 with a strike rate of 128.22. He has scored one hundred and 22 fifties.

Babar has scored 3,216 runs in 86 T20I innings with a strike rate of 129.78 at an average of 44.05, including two centuries and 29 half centuries.

Those who are criticising Babar and Rizwan for their strike rates should realise that they are careful in the power play as both are technically sound batsmen but the middle order has failed to deliver almost in all matches.

It was proved in the Asia Cup final: when both Babar and Rizwan fell cheaply, Pakistan batting collapsed on 147 in pursuit of 171. It was a mediocre batting performance as only two batters scored in the double-figures.

Babar has said that since the last World Cup, “we have envisaged the conditions in Australia and planned accordingly. This whole squad is our strength and I am hopeful that this team will get us good results.”

NOTE: All statistics are updated before the final of the tri-series in New Zealand.

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