Pallekele [Sri Lanka], February 24 : Pakistani batter Babar Azam endured another disappointing outing in the ongoing T20 World Cup, registering the lowest strike rate by a batter in the history of the tournament.
With Pakistan's all-important Super Eight clash to be won following a washout against New Zealand, all eyes were on Babar to finally play a big knock. However, he disappointed big time, scoring just 25 in 24 balls, with two fours.
This drops Babar's T20 World Cup strike rate to 111.5, the lowest by a batter in the tournament's history (among players with 500 runs). Above him are: Pakistan's Mohammed Hafeez (111.8), Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara (112.2) and New Zealand's Kane Williamson (112.5).
In 23 T20 World Cup matches, Babar has made 640 runs at an average of 33.68 and a strike rate of 111.5, with five fifties in 21 innings.
In the ongoing tournament, he has made just 91 runs in four innings at an average of 22.75 and a strike rate of 112.34, with a best score of 46.
Coming to the match, Pakistan won the toss and opted to bat first. Sahibzada Farhan (63 in 45 balls, with seven fours and two sixes) continued his fine form in the tournament and along with knocks from Babar, Fakhar Zaman (25 in 16 balls, with two fours and sixes each), and Shadab Khan (23 in 11 balls, with four boundaries) took Pakistan to 164/9.
Liam Dawson (3/24), Jofra Archer (2/32) delivered brilliant four over spells, while Jamie Overton (2/26) also was brilliant in his three-over spell.