KARACHI    -   Pakistan’s flamboyant batsman Babar Azam on Monday completed 1,000 runs in the calendar year 2019 to become the first Pakistani batsman to reach the milestone since 2013.

Azam reached this milestone in the 19th inning of the year making him the fastest batsman from Pakistan to complete 1000 runs in any calendar year. He achieved this feat just as he completed his 54th run during Pakistan’s second ODI against Sri Lanka here at the National Stadium. The right-handed batsman is the 10th Pakistani batsman overall to score one thousand runs in ODIs in a calendar year, and the first since 2013. The duo of Misbah ul Haq and Mohammad Hafeez had scored 1,000 ODI runs (Misbah 1,373 and Hafeez 1,301) in 2013. Since then, Pakistan batsmen had to wait for six years to reach this milestone.

Mohammad Yousuf of Pakistan has the most feats of 1,000 calendar year runs in ODIs by the fact that he achieved it on three different occasions, in 2000, 2002 and 2003. Aamir Sohail, Ijaz Ahmed, Inzamam ul Haq and Hafeez have also achieved this feat twice while Javed Miandad, Misbah ul Haq, Saeed Anwar and Younis Khan reached this milestone just once in past.

Babar, 24, has already recorded several Pakistan’s ODI records to his name. He is considered as one of the best white ball players of recent days. Babar reaches the milestone in 19th inning of the year which makes him fastest from Pakistan to complete 1000 runs in any calendar year.