He made his debut in 2010 in Australia in the test that followed the infamous Sydney test. He played just that one test due to the immense public pressure to oust Kamran Akmal, and then disappeared from the international scene for 3 years before returning again in 2013 for the 3 tests in South Africa.

He played those 3 tests, on wickets where most Pakistani batsmen failed, and managed a top score of 40 in his 6 innings leaving question marks over his batting abilities. He was axed again and didn't play for another year, till he was recalled to replace an injured Adnan Akmal in the second test of the series against Sri Lanka in the UAE earlier this year.

Since then, Sarfraz Ahmed has not looked back.

It has been a marvellous year for him and he has marched on like a man on a mission.

For a man whose batting was doubted by everyone around the world, Sarfraz made one hell of a turnaround to notch up scores of 7, 74, 5, 48, 55, 52*, 103, 55, 109, 15*, 19*, 13*, 112, 24* in 8 test matches in 2014.

This year, Sarfraz has scored 691 runs at an average of 76.77 and a strike rate of 73.12 in 8 tests!

Those figures include feats like the fastest century ever scored by a Pakistani wicketkeeper, the second fastest century ever scored by a wicketkeeper, and the only Pakistani wicketkeeper to score three centuries in a calendar year.

Only AB De Villiers has scored more centuries (4) in a calendar year as the designated wicketkeeper of the team.

Sarfraz' batting has been a revelation and he has been a major factor towards Pakistan's success in test cricket this year.

He is only 12 tests old, yet he has already left a mark on the cricketing map and is fast gaining the reputation of being Pakistan's best wicketkeeper-batsman ever.


There are 8 wicketkeepers who have played at least 10 tests for Pakistan in the history of their test cricket; and as far as their batting prowess is concerned, there haven't been any better than Kamran Akmal and Moin Khan.

Kamran and Moin lead the runs rally for Pakistani wicketkeepers in tests and both have a similar average as well. It can be argued that Kamran was slightly better considering he has 6 test centuries (no wicketkeeper from Pakistan has scored more), with some match winning ones.

Sarfraz, with 3 test centuries is already half way there; and the way he is batting, he could well be above Kamran in just another year.

Sarfraz' test average of 45.88, which is 15 runs better than Pakistan's best ever, already shows his superiority with the bat.

No one among all test wicketkeepers in the world comes close to making the impact that Adam Gilchrist and Andy Flower made with the bat. Sangakkara and AB De Villiers could have had they continued to keep in test cricket; however if Sarfraz can sustain his current form in the long term, he will undoubtedly be remembered among the greatest wicketkeeper batsmen in test cricket ever.

Among his global peers, Sarfraz is right up there in terms of his batting average in tests, among all wicketkeepers who have played at least 10 tests.

It is extremely rare that Pakistan plays a test series and comes out of it with its batsmen breaking record after record. The Pakistani batsmen have played so well in this series against Australia and have broken so many records that one wonders what woke up these sleeping giants.

I believe that in this series we have seen the best ever performance by Pakistani batsmen ever in a test series. At least in my lifetime.

And I am not buying any excuses regarding flat pitches because it is the same pitches where the Australian batsmen have fallen like nine pins. Besides a David Warner century in the first test and a Mitchell Marsh 87 in the second, the Aussies have had no answer to Pakistan's pace, reverse swing, and spin.

So many records have tumbled in this series, that its become hard to keep a tab on all of them. If you take a look at the best betting apps out there, each one of them will tell you that the Pakistanis achieved all this against the odds!

Here is what the Pakistani batsmen have achieved in the two tests against Australia.

1. Most Test Centuries by a Pakistani Batsman

The record was held by Inzamam Ul Haq with 25 centuries. Younis Khan started this test series with 24 hundreds, equal with Yousuf and one behind Inzamam, and he ended the test series with 27 centuries, an all time Pakistan record.

2. Century in both Innings of a Test vs Australia

Glen Turner scored 101 and 110* in the same test against Australia in 1974. Since then, Australia played 425 tests over 40 years and no one ever achieved the feat of twin centuries against them. The Australians were known to roll over opposition batsmen, and if any one scored big against them, he wouldn't a second time around because the Aussie bowlers were well prepared for him.

This test series witnessed three Pakistani batsmen score centuries in both innings of a test! Younis Khan did it in the first test with 106 and 103*, while Azhar Ali (109 & 100*) and Misbah Ul Haq (101 & 101*) did it in the second test.

Something that was not managed over 40 years and 425 tests was achieved by 3 Pakistanis in just 10 days and 2 tests!

3. Three Consecutive Test Centuries vs Australia

It was in December 1924 - January 1925 when Herbert Sutcliffe scored 115, 176, and 127 in three consecutive innings against Australia. No one managed that feat for another 90 years till the Australians came up against Younis Khan in the UAE. With scores of 106, 103*, and 213 Younis Khan became only the second batsman to score three consecutive centuries against Australia in tests.

You can look at that another way - Younis Khan is the only batsman in the world to score 2 centuries and 1 double century in 3 consecutive test innings against Australia. Additionally, Younis Khan's 422 runs in 3 consecutive innings is the highest aggregate for any batsman against Australia in 3 consecutive test innings, beating Sutcliffe's 418 scored 90 years ago.

4. Highest Aggregate in a 2-test series vs Australia

Sachin Tendulkar scored 403 runs in 4 innings in India's 2-test series against Australia in 2010-11. That was the highest aggregate in a 2-test series against Australia. Younis Khan aggregated 468 runs in his 4 innings in this series against Australia, taking the record away from Sachin Tendulkar.

Just for the record, the highest aggregate in a 3-test series against Australia is also held by a Pakistani - Salim Malik, who scored 557 runs in 6 innings in the series in 1994-95. Interestingly that was the last time Pakistan beat Australia in a test series.

5. Highest Aggregate by a Pakistani Batsman in a 2-test series

Javed Miandad held the record for the highest aggregate by a Pakistani batsman in a 2-test series. He had scored 389 runs in only 2 innings, including a cracking 271, against New Zealand in 1988-89.

Younis Khan now holds that record with his record run spree against Australia.

6. Fastest Fifty in Test Matches

Jacques Kallis held the world record with a fifty off only 24 deliveries against Zimbabwe in 2004-05. The Pakistani record was held by Shahid Afridi who had managed it in 26 deliveries against India, also in 2004-05.

Misbah broke the world and Pakistani records by getting his fifty off only 21 deliveries against Australia in the second test of the series.

7. Fastest Century in Test Matches

Sir Vivian Richards was the owner of the record for the fastest 100 in test matches. He had reached his 100 off only 56 deliveries against England in the summer of 1986. For 28 years he was the sole owner of the record. However, now, Sir Viv shares the record with Misbah who smashed a 100 off 56 deliveries against Australia in the second test of the series.

Sir Viv's innings was 110* off 58 deliveries with 7 sixes and 7 fours. Misbah's was 101* off 57 deliveries with 5 sixes and 11 fours.

8. Centuries against all Test Playing Nations

Prior to this series between Pakistan and Australia, there were 11 batsmen who had scored centuries against all the other 9 test playing nations, but none of them were from Pakistan. Younis Khan became the first batsman from Pakistan to join that esteemed club of centurions.

9. Pakistan's Highest Scorer in Test Wins away from Home

Inzamam Ul Haq, with 2,707 runs, was Pakistan's highest scorer in test wins away from home before Pakistan started this series against Australia. After the first test that Pakistan won, Younis Khan went past Inzamam's tally and is now Pakistan's leading run scorer in test wins away from home with 2,847 runs.

If Pakistan wins the second test against Australia, which looks likely by tomorrow, Younis Khan will extend that runs tally to 3,106. That will leave only Ricky Ponting ahead of him in the list of highest run scorers in test wins away from home.

10. Average of 50 in Each of the 4 Innings of a Test

Sir Don Bradman and Herbert Sutcliffe were the only batsmen in the world who boasted an average of 50 or more in each of the 4 innings of a test match (with a minimum of 10 knocks in each innings).

With his exploits in this series against Australia, Younis Khan now ranks alongside the two greats and averages over 50 in each of the 4 innings of tests.

11. Century in both Innings of a Test by two Batsmen

This feat was achieved only once before when Ian Chappell and Greg Chappell, both scored centuries in both innings of the test between Australia and New Zealand in 1974.

Today, Misbah Ul Haq and Azhar Ali joined them and became the second pair of batsmen in the world to score centuries in both innings of the same test.


I'm sure there are a few more records that I missed out on, but these are 11 grandiose facts regarding batsmen from a team that is not known for its batting. It is a team that has historically perished in font of quality bowling and a team that has often collapsed for no good reason. Yet, here they are, scoring heaps of runs against the world's number 2 test team and arguably the best bowling attack in the world.

Another interesting fact is that five Pakistani batsmen, Younis Khan, Misbah Ul Haq, Azhar Ali, Ahmed Shehzad, and Sarfaraz Ahmed, scored 9 centuries against Australia in the two tests. All of them scored their first ever test century against Australia in this series.

Those are some amazing achievements by Pakistani batsmen. They look even greater when one hears the names of batsmen whose records were broken or equalled by these Pakistani batsmen.

Sir Don Bradman, Herbert Sutcliffe, Ian Chappell, Greg Chappell, Glen Turner, Sir Viv Richards, Javed Miandad, Inzamam Ul Haq, Sachin Tendulkar, Jacques Kallis, Mohammad Yousuf, Steve Waugh, Brian Lara, Kumar Sangakkara, Ricky Ponting, and Rahul Dravid were all bettered or equalled by the Pakistani batsmen during the course of this test series against Australia!

This 2-0 series win over Australia was sweet. Extremely sweet! There are so many stories within this 2-test series that I don't really know where to begin; but they all need to be told, for this series win is right up there as Pakistan's best test series victory, in my lifetime, if not ever.

When I think of Pakistan's victories in test series that I have witnessed, the greatest ones that come to mind are the ones against England '92, Australia '94, Asian Test Championship '99, South Africa '03, England '05, India '06, England '12, and this one Australia '14.

It will take time for this win to sink in and to realize how this one compares with past victories; and time will also tell the role this victory plays in shaping the future of Pakistan's test team.

However, one thing is quite clear. I don't think Pakistan has ever dominated a series the way they did this one. And that too against expectations considering that Pakistan were ranked number 6 in the world and they were up against the world's number 2 side, which was the top ranked side till a few months ago! Those lucky punters who believed in us with the bookies like Paddy Power will be rubbing their hands excitedly now too!

Pakistan completely outplayed the Australians and how.

I think that the greatest story of this 2-0 test series victory over Australia lies in the rare success of the PCB and the team management. No one could have even thought of a result like this considering that barely a few weeks ago Younis Khan had threatened to quit tests due to his sacking from ODIs and Misbah Ul Haq had stepped down from the team for the 3rd ODI against Australia due to losing all his confidence in himself.

In a situation like this with Pakistan's senior most cricketers down and out, it was PCB Chairman Shaharyar Khan' years of diplomatic service experience that came to the rescue. You can't give enough credit to Shaharyar sahab for convincing Younis to continue his test career and also for putting his weight behind Misbah at a time when the skipper was at an all time confidence low.

For a cricket board that has had leadership problems and management issues for as long as I have known it, this series will go down in history as the rare occurrence where true leadership was demonstrated by the Board. I salute you Shaharyar Sahab.

As for the new team management, this was their second series in charge. Moin Khan, Waqar Younis, Mushtaq Ahmed, and Grant Flower had got off to the worst possible start in their first series in charge in Sri Lanka a couple of months ago. The T20 and ODIs against Australia were also nothing to write home about.

The tests against Australia however were a different story altogether. Younis Khan has publicly acknowledged the effort that Grant Flower put in with him. The success of Pakistan's batting line up, in a series where Australia's world beating batsmen failed, also lies in the work that Grant Flower has put in.

Sarfraz Ahmed has had a marvellous year with the gloves and the bat. Moin Khan deserves a lot of credit for not only Sarfraz' inclusion in the team, but also for the confidence Moin has had in his abilities for a long time now.

Zulfiqar Babar and Yasir Shah combined to take 28 Australian wickets in the 2 tests. Prior to this series, Babar had played all of 2 tests for Pakistan, while Yasir had played none. They did have tonnes of first class experience, but this series was no domestic game, it was against the mighty Australians and both the spinners exploited the Aussie weakness against spin to great effect.

It was a big ask in the absence of the more experienced Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman, yet both Zulfiqar and Yasir stood up and performed like champions, and I believe some credit must go to the spin consultant, Mushtaq Ahmed, who has been working behind the scenes with Pakistan's spinners.

While Pakistan's batsmen and spinners dominated the series, the pacers, Imran Khan and Rahat Ali, both with very little international experience, also performed their role to great effect. Both of them provided crucial breakthroughs in both the tests and their reverse swing was noteworthy, especially compared to the Australian pacers, who were pedestrian at best.

Every time Waqar Younis gets involved with the Pakistan team, the pacers tend to pick up their performance. Whether it is as bowling coach, or head coach, Waqar has always had a positive impact on the team, and more so, on the fast bowlers. This time is no different. He made a difference when Rana Naveed was part of the team; he did it with Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamer, and Mohammad Asif; and now he has done it with Imran Khan and Rahat Ali.

I know that everything looks good when the team performs. It makes the captain look good, it makes the team management look good, and it makes the board look like a professional unit. There may be little chunks here and there that need ironing out, but for Pakistan, this leadership and management seems to be coming together well, and at the right time considering that the World Cup is right round the corner.

Praising the leadership will be incomplete without a word or two about Misbah Ul Haq. Anyone in power is prone to criticism and being Pakistan's captain makes you even more vulnerable. Every single move is scrutinized and every little mistake is admonished as if one has committed a grave sin. With Misbah, it is no different.

For the past 3 years, Misbah has been criticized by former players, his own players, and the large fan base of Pakistan cricket. He has had supporters too, but he has heard his fair share of criticism for a number of things - for the way he bats, for the way he leads, for the players he supports, and for really everything he does on the field.

The pressure on Misbah, particularly during this year, has been immense. The losses have hurt, and the loss of his own form has hurt even more. One of Misbah's great strengths has been his performances under pressure. Hell, he took over the team when they were going through the worst crisis in their history; if that is not absorbing pressure and leading then I don't know what is.

The pressure never really did get to Misbah. Or so I thought. He seemed to soak it all in, ignore the critics, and continue in the way he thought best. But he finally crumbled. He buckled under pressure after a number of losses for Pakistan and batting failures for him, and he decided to sit out of the last ODI of the series against Australia.

For a captain to sit out of a match because he has no confidence left and he feels the team will be better off without him should result in the end of a captaincy career.

Not for Misbah though.

To come back from that to lead the team to its first test series win over Australia in 20 years, whitewash the Aussies and dominate them like they were some minnow, score twin centuries in the same test, and smash the fastest century ever in test cricket is nothing short of remarkable!

Misbah came back from the ditch and at the end of the series stood tall as the most successful captain in Pakistan's test history, along with Imran Khan and Javed Miandad.

The series win over Australia and the largest ever win for Pakistan in terms of runs was a rare occurrence, but so was the success of Pakistan cricket's leadership.