This morning, with Australia at 91-7, a friend on Whatsapp commented that this has got to be the mother of all comebacks after Pakistan were 57-5 on the first morning of the test.

That discussion led to more examples of Pakistan coming from behind to win a test.

Here are five of Pakistan's great test wins that came after they had their backs against the wall.

PAKISTAN VS NEW ZEALAND
ONLY TEST
HAMILTON 1993
On a green top, a typical surface in New Zealand, Pakistan were put in by the Kiwis and in no time were reduced to 12-3. A customary captain's innings of 92 from Javed Miandad saved Pakistan from complete disaster as they managed a somewhat respectable 216 in the first innings.

Mark Greatbatch played a magnificent knock of 133, but Wasim, Waqar, and Mushtaq ensured that New Zealand do not bat Pakistan out of the game. The rest of the Kiwi batsmen could not do much and New Zealand took a modest 48 run lead.

Pakistan's woes against seam and swing continued in the second innings as they were bundled out for 174 with the only saving grace being Inzamam's 75.

Set a target of 127, it should have been a walk in the park for New Zealand.

But Pakistan's deadly Ws duo had other things in mind.


Wasim Akram bowled unchanged for 22 overs and dismissed half the New Zealand side, with Waqar Younis running through the other half, leaving the Kiwis in tatters.

The greatest pacers to play for Pakistan destroyed New Zealand giving Pakistan an unlikely 33 run win.

PAKISTAN VS INDIA
FIRST TEST, ASIAN TEST CHAMPIONSHIP
KOLKATA 1999
Having just drawn the test series 1-1 with India, Pakistan took on India again in Kolkata in the first match of the Asian Test Championship.

After winning the toss and batting first, within 45 minutes of the game, Srinath and Prasad had Pakistan reeling at 26-6.

The entire batting line up, barring Saleem Malik (32), had succumbed to the seam and swing of India's opening bowlers. Moin Khan played a valuable knock of 70 and with support from Malik and Wasim Akram (38), managed to give Pakistan a total of 185.

India could not capitalize on this as they also folded for 223 in the first innings as Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar shared 7 wickets, including Shoaib's two scalps of successive yorkers to Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar.


Pakistan's second innings was a one man masterclass from Saeed Anwar as he carried his bat with a magnificent career best 188 off 259 deliveries, which was laced with 23 boundaries and a six. He found some support from Mohammad Yousuf (56) with the rest of the Pakistan batting not doing much.

Javagal Srinath, Pakistan's first innings tormentor, took 8 wickets in the second innings, giving him career best match figures of 13-132.

Thanks to Saeed Anwar, Pakistan managed to post 316, giving India a target of 279 to win. In response, India managed only 232, and Pakistan won by 46 runs.

No one expected Pakistan to win after they were 26-6 inside 9 overs on the first morning of the test.

PAKISTAN VS INDIA
THIRD TEST
KARACHI 2006
This test match started in similar fashion to the one in Kolkata. After winning the toss, Indian put Pakistan into bat on a breezy Karachi morning on a damp wicket.

At the end of the first over, Pakistan were 0-3 having lost Salman Butt, Younis Khan, and Mohammad Yousuf to an Irfan Pathan hatrick!

By the 10th over, Pakistan were reeling at 39-6.

Kamran Akmal then played the innings of his life as he smashed 18 boundaries in a classy 113 where he shared a 115 run 7th wicket partnership with Abdul Razzak (45) and a 82 run 8th wicket partnership with Shoaib Akhtar (45) to take Pakistan to a respectable 245.


Pakistan wrested the initiative away from India once again as Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Asif, and Abdul Razzaq combined to bowl India out for 238.

In the 2nd innings, Pakistan just smashed their way to 599-7 declared. Faisal Iqbal hit 139 and every other batsman that batted got 50+, including a couple of 90s from Mohammad Yousuf and Abdul Razzaq.

India managed only 265 in their improbable chase of 607, giving Pakistan their largest win ever by 341 runs (which was later broken in 2014 when Pakistan beat Australia by 356 runs).

Who would have thought that Pakistan will manage a record breaking win after they were 0-3 on the first morning!

PAKISTAN VS ENGLAND
SECOND TEST
ABU DHABI 2012
This was the second test of the series against England and Pakistan were behind in the entire game except for the final 30 overs of the match.

On day 1, Pakistan collapsed from 203-4 to 257 all out as Broad, Anderson, and Panesar proved too much for Pakistan's lower order. In response England posted 327 taking a 70 run first innings lead.

In the second innings, Pakistan again could not handle Monty Panesar as he picked up 6 wickets to bowl Pakistan out for 214.

Needing only 145 runs to win, England began their chase cautiously putting on 20 runs in 14 overs. They lost Alastair Cook to Hafeez off the final delivery of the 15th over to make it 21-1.

Then the carnage began.

From there it went to 26-2, 37-4, 68-7, and then 72 ALL OUT !

Abdur Rehman's 6-25 and Saeed Ajmal's 3-22 gave Pakistan one of their most improbable wins ever.


No one gave Pakistan a chance to defend 145, but they did and how. It was a great escape and a wonderful win! 

PAKISTAN VS ENGLAND
THIRD TEST
DUBAI 2012
After winning the series following the great escape in Abu Dhabi, Pakistan should have been confident going into bat after winning the toss in the third test against England.

However, within 45 minutes of the morning, Pakistan found themselves at 21-5, with Broad and Anderson ripping through the batting. Panesar further added to their woes and Pakistan were bowled out for 99.

England should have run away with the match but their Abu Dhabi tormentors, Rehman (5-40) and Ajmal (3-59), combined again to restrict England's lead to only 42 runs.

In the second innings, Azhar Ali (157) and Younis Khan (127) combined in a 200 run partnership to give Pakistan a 300 plus run lead.


Pakistan set England a target of 324, which at the end proved too much for them.

No one thought Pakistan will end up winning the test by 71 runs after they were bowled out for 99 in the first innings.

From Javed Miandad to Inzamam Ul Haq to Mohammad Yousuf to Younis Khan, Pakistan have always had a formidable number 4 in Test matches. In most of Pakistan's Test XIs, the number four batsman is usually their primary batsman.

Javed Miandad fulfilled that role for most part of his career. He batted at number 4 in 140 out of his 189 test innings.

Once he retired, Saleem Malik took over the number four position briefly, before moving back to number five and promoting Inzamam Ul Haq up the order.

Inzamam batted at four in half of his total career innings and made that position his own before moving down the order and promoting Mohammad Yousuf to four, who was at the time at the peak of his batting prowess.

Younis Khan, who had batted at number three for most of his career and formed part of Pakistan's best test middle order with Inzamam and Yousuf, moved to the number four position after the retirements of the latter two.

Younis batted at 4 till the end of his career performing as well as he had done at three and as well as his predecessors.


As evident, all these batsmen performed admirably at number four.

So who is going to fill these big boots now that Younis Khan has retired?

More importantly, who is going to fill the big hole left in Pakistan's Test middle order with the retirements of both Younis and Misbah Ul Haq?

In the past 7 years since Misbah took over Pakistan's Test captaincy, he and Younis have collectively scored 30% of Pakistan's Test runs and 38% of Pakistan's Test hundreds.

How do you replace 9,000 test runs and 26 test centuries?

Just like Miandad and Malik passed on the mantle to Inzamam and Yousuf, they passed it on to Younis and Misbah. And now with these two moving on, the mantle sits firmly with Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq.

Both Azhar and Asad made their test debuts around the same time as Misbah made his test captaincy debut. During this period, Azhar and Asad have established themselves as the cornerstones of Pakistan's test batting line up.

While Azhar made his mark as a number 3 and later as an opener, Asad has made history as a number 6 test batsman.

Asad will most likely fill the vacant number 4 position, but Pakistan still require two test batsmen to bat at numbers 5 and 6.

Here is a list of potential incumbents whom I believe can take Pakistan's Test team forward.

FAWAD ALAM

He is 31. He has scored over 10,000 first class runs with 25 centuries and averages 56, higher than any other cricketer in Pakistan ever.

He has played 3 tests for Pakistan and even scored a debut 100. In fact he was the first batsman from Pakistan to score a test century on debut away from home.

Yet after 6 test innings, he was discarded and never played a test again.

In last season's Quaid-e-Azam trophy, he averaged 55, scoring 500 runs in 11 innings. In every first class season, he is among the leading run scorers. I have not seen a more consistent batsman in Pakistan than Fawad and it will always remain a mystery to me as to why he is constantly ignored by the selectors.

USMAN SALAHUDDIN

This 26 year old batsman from Lahore was picked for 2 ODIs during the tour to the West Indies in 2011. He did not appear for the international side after that, however he has been a consistent performer in domestic cricket.

In 10 first class seasons, he has piled on 6,000 runs with 19 centuries at an impressive average of 47.

He was the 4th highest run scorer in the last Quaid-e-Azam Trophy where he amassed 843 runs in 17 innings with 3 centuries and 5 fifties at an average of 70.

He has been on the verge of national selection for a while now and it is finally time he finds a permanent spot in Pakistan's Test XI.

HARIS SOHAIL

Haris has not played a first class match in over 3 years due to injury, however he has a phenomenal record, and he has shown in ODIs that he belongs at the highest level of the game.

His career first class average of 52 and 11 centuries in 80 odd innings with a career best of 211* suggests that he is made for the long version of the game. Even in ODIs, he showed his liking for staying at the crease, and his ODI average of 43 demonstrates that he is a world class batsman.

He might be the ideal replacement for a batsman like Misbah.

IMAM UL HAQ

He is only 21 and has been around for only 3 seasons. His overall first class average of 35 suggests that he still has to establish himself in the domestic circuit; however he has just had a breakthrough season where he notched up 848 runs in 20 innings in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy and ended the tournament as its third highest run scorer.

Imam, who is the nephew of Chief Selector Inzamam Ul Haq, was extremely impressive in the QEA Trophy where he knocked 3 centuries and 3 fifties, including a career best unbeaten 200.

Some may feel that it may be too early to blood him, but I feel it might just be the right time for a young batsmen with tremendous potential to be introduced the highest level.

ASIF ZAKIR

A veteran of the domestic circuit, Asif has been around for 15 years and at 33 he might be past the ideal age to make a test debut, but then we have all seen Misbah blossom as a test batsman after the age of 35.

Asif's overall first class record is not that impressive - 7,000 runs, 19 centuries, and average of 37. However, he was the second highest run scorer in last season's Quaid-e-Azam Trophy with 853 runs in 11 innings at an average of 85.3. He hit as many as 4 centuries during the tournament.


So there are a few options for Pakistan's selectors to consider. Pakistan's next test series is some time away so the selectors have time on their hands before making their decisions. It will be interesting to note which batsmen make it into the squad and then which two make it to the XI.

My first two choices will be Fawad Alam and Haris Sohail; however I would also like to see Usman Salahuddin and Imam Ul Haq in the squad.

With Babar Azam set at number 3, ideally Asad Shafiq should move up to number 4, with the two new batsmen fitting in at 5 and 6.

Sami Aslam should also be brought back to open with Azhar Ali. The tour to West Indies showed us that Ahmed Shehzad and Shan Masood are not in the same league as Sami, who impressed with his temperament during the tour of England.

Azhar, Sami, Babar, Asad, Haris, Fawad sounds formidable enough to me!

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Younis Khan is the greatest test batsman produced by Pakistan. Even though less talented than Javed Miandad, Inzamam Ul Haq, and Mohammad Yousuf, Younis Khan showed what sheer hard work, dedication, and determination can produce.

His numbers, which you can see in detail below, speak volumes of his contribution to Pakistan cricket. Beyond the numbers, his support to captains, guidance to younger batsmen, ability to build partnerships, and achievements as a fielder make him one of the best cricketers ever to play the game.

Here is a look at Younis in Numbers...

PAKISTANI COLOSSUS
He could have finished with the best average as well if he did not have an indifferent last test series, but the gap between Younis and the next best in terms of runs (Miandad) and centuries (Inzamam) is quite significant.

Some of his batting feats include:

- The first batsman from Pakistan and 13th in the world to reach 10,000 Test runs.
- One of the four batsmen from Pakistan to score a triple century in Tests.
- One of 8 captains in the world to score a triple century in Tests.

WORLD CLASS CENTURY MACHINE
Only 5 batsmen in the world have scored more centuries than Younis Khan in Tests; only 2 of them scored them at a faster rate than Younis; and none of them converted their fifties into centuries better than Younis did.

With a century every 6.26 innings in test cricket, Younis has one of the best century scoring frequency in the history of test cricket.

With the fifth best conversion ratio, Younis is even better at converting his fifties into centuries.

GREAT MATCH WINNER
For Pakistan, no one scored more runs or more centuries than Younis Khan did in Test wins. He played in 3 test wins less than Inzamam Ul Haq; however scored 300 more runs and 2 more centuries than the other great match winner Pakistan produced.

Among all batsmen, Younis has the 5th best average in Test wins in the history of the game.

What is even better is Younis Khan's record in Test wins away from home - he is the second highest run scorer in away wins and has a phenomenal average of 94.2 in these wins. And these do not include wins in his home away from home; i.e. the UAE.


KING OF THE FOURTH INNINGS
Younis Khan has one of the best records in the world for the fourth innings in tests. He is among the only 6 batsmen in the world who average above 50 in the fourth innings; and no one in the history of the game has scored more test centuries in the fourth innings than Younis Khan has.


BATTING GIANT FOR ALL CONDITIONS
Younis Khan is the only batsman in the world who has scored Test centuries in 11 countries - in all 10 test playing nations and in the UAE.

It did not matter where he played and who he played against, Younis scored lots of runs.

He averages above 50 in 7 of the 11 countries that he has played Tests in; he averages less than 40 in only 2 of these countries.

He averages above 50 against 5 countries; and not lower than 38 against any opposition.

Younis is the fifth highest run scorer in Tests away from home, and this does not include his test runs scored in the UAE. Needless to say, no one from Pakistan has scored more runs than Younis in foreign conditions.

Imran Khan was perhaps the last Pakistani cricketer who retired with grace after accomplishing what no one before him had.

And now, after all these years, another Khan and another Niazi, have bid farewell to the game like no one before them. One after a series where he became the first Pakistani batsman to reach 10,000 test runs; the other after becoming the first Pakistani captain to win a test series in the Caribbean.

These two feats are just the icing over the unparalleled careers that the two legends, Younis Khan and Misbah Ul Haq, have had.

I don't think any Pakistani cricketer got a send off as grand and as epic as these two did, and boy did they deserve it!

Talk about an epic farewell series.

Talk about an epic last test match of your career.

Even if one had put the best writers to task, no one would have scripted the end better than the way it folded in front of our eyes during the last session at Windsor Park in Dominica last night.

Pakistan had waited 60 years for this victory. Imran Khan had spent half his career trying to achieve this victory.

Surely it is not the same West Indies; but it hasn't been for two decades now and yet Pakistan never managed to win a series there.

Till last night.

The last hour, while Roston Chase blocked and blocked and blocked, all those memories of bad umpiring decisions, missed run outs, lost opportunities came haunting back.

That hour was so nerve wrecking for us fans that one can only imagine what Misbah, Younis, and the other nine men on the field would have been going through.

Anything less than a win would have been such a depressing end to two legendary careers.

Anything less than a win would have meant that Pakistan lost the best chance they had at a series win in the Caribbean.

Pakistan held on though.

They held on to their belief and they kept fighting.

You could see the Pakistanis flustered though. Yasir was running in faster, bowling a little faster and flatter, almost as if he was in some hurry. Probably to get in as many overs as possible.

Till that final delivery.

All nine fielders moved in closer.

They were all right under Gabriel's nose.

Everyone knew the importance of that delivery, but no one more than Yasir.

He delivered it a bit slower than the rest of his over.

It came looping down enticing Gabriel.

And the rest ...

What an end seriously. What an epic end for Misbah and Younis.

In two days time, Younis Khan and Misbah Ul Haq will take the field for the very last time for Pakistan. Many feel they are leaving too soon, while many think that they have timed it perfectly.

No one really knows when the best time is to hang up their boots, but one thing I am sure of...

Both Younis Khan and Misbah Ul Haq are still at the top of their game, still the best test batsmen Pakistan have, and still have some years left in them.

In my opinion, the best 5 batsmen to play test cricket for Pakistan are:

All five of them are Pakistani stalwarts; however some of them overstayed their welcome.

If you take a look at the last three years of their careers, it is apparent that Javed Miandad and Mohammad Yousuf had lost their touch.

Younis in fact has averaged more than his career average in his last three years; while Misbah has been quite consistent. Inzamam also performed in line with his career performance in his final few years.

Miandad and Yousuf though were below par.

Probably best for Younis and Misbah to call it time while they are still at the top of their game.

I found this quite interesting so I took a look at the final three years of the leading 5 run scorers of all time in test cricket. This is what I found:

While Kallis, Dravid, and Sangakkara were still at their peak; Sachin and Ponting went through a significant dip in form in their final few years.

Like Younis, Sangakkara too averaged more than his career average in his last three years.

It is also interesting to note that Younis, Ponting, and Kallis scored double centuries in their last three years; while Sangakkara managed a triple century!

Even more interesting is the fact that Kallis and Sangakkara managed their career highest score in their final three years.

So much for legends overstaying their welcome; besides a few all of them retired with grace and while they were at the top of their games.

In the just concluded test between Pakistan and the West Indies, Younis Khan became the 13th batsman in the world, and the first batsman from Pakistan, to reach the coveted feat of 10,000 test runs.

Here are some interesting facts and stats regarding the 13 members of the 10K Club:

1. All of the 13 batsmen have captained their countries in test matches. All of them, besides Kallis, have been appointed full time test captains for their nations. Kallis filled in on 2 occasions.
2. Younis, Lara, and Jayawardene were the only batsmen who had scored a triple century by the time they reached 10K. Besides Kallis, each one had scored a double hundred.
3. Ricky Ponting had the most centuries (35) by the time he reached 10K. Younis, Sachin, and Gavaskar had 34 each.
4. Younis Khan has the best 50 to 100 conversion ratio among the batsmen in the 10K club.
5. Steve Waugh and Alastair Cook are the only batsmen that were not averaging 50 at the time of reaching 10K.
6. Younis Khan's 70 sixes at the time of reaching 10K are the most sixes hit at the time of reaching 10K.
7. Alastair Cook and Sunil Gavaskar are the only openers in the 10K club.
8. Ricky Ponting had the best average on reaching 10K.
9. Waugh, Cook, Border, Lara, and Ponting were all captaining their country when they reached 10K.
10. Only Steve Waugh and Rahul Dravid scored hundreds in the innings they scored their 10,000th test run.
11. Cook, Lara, Kallis, and Jayawardene are the only members of the 10K club who did not score at least a 50 in the test they reached 10K.
12. Brian Lara reached 10K the fastest in terms of innings.
13. Cook, Tendulkar, Jayawardene, and Younis Khan are the only ones who were part of the winning side in the test where they scored their 10,000th run.
14. Younis Khan, at 39 (officially), is the oldest batsman to reach the landmark.
15. Sunil Gavaskar reached 10K in his second last test match. Younis has done so in his third last.

1. Barring injury, Misbah will end his career having captained Pakistan in 56 tests and becoming the 9th most capped captain in the world and second most capped from the subcontinent after MS Dhoni.
2. One win will give Misbah 25 test wins as captain, taking him past Alastair Cook. Three wins will take him past Mark Taylor and Michael Vaughan, and place him level with Sir Viv Richards, MS Dhoni, and Hansie Cronje.
3. Younis Khan is 23 runs away from becoming the first batsman from Pakistan to score 10,000 runs in test cricket.
4. Younis Khan requires another 146 runs to surpass Sunil Gavaskar's test runs tally of 10,122 and become the 5th most prolific test batsman from the Subcontinent.
5. Younis Khan needs one more century to become the first batsman from Pakistan to score 35 test centuries. If he scores two centuries he will join Rahul Dravid with 36 test centuries, the 5th most in the world and 3rd most by a batsman from the subcontinent.
6. Misbah is 49 runs away from completing 5,000 runs in test cricket. He will become the 7th batsman from Pakistan to score 5,000 test runs.
7. Misbah requires another 112 runs to surpass Zaheer Abbas' runs tally of 5,062 to become the 6th highest run scorer from Pakistan in tests.
8. Misbah is 47 runs away from becoming the first batsman from Pakistan to score 4,000 test runs as captain. Another 4 runs will take Misbah past Michael Clarke's runs tally of 3,946 and place him at 9th for most runs as test captain. 

I will definitely do a numbers post on these two extremely prolific batsmen, but that will have to wait till the three tests against the West Indies are over.

There will be a few more records and much else to celebrate then - Pakistan's first 10K in tests, Pakistan's first 4K as Test captain, and quite possibly Pakistan's first 35th test ton.

Numbers however, will only tell half the story in the case of these two stalwarts. Their services to Pakistan's test cricket over the past decade are incomparable.

Both Younis Khan and Misbah Ul Haq will be missed immensely, not only for the runs they produce in the middle, but more so for their respective contributions off the field, in the dressing room, and on the other players.






























YOUNIS KHAN

He is Pakistan's very own King Khan.

Besides claiming every single test batting record there is to claim for Pakistan, Younis has had an impact like no other on an entire generation of batsmen.

He has been a major guiding force for many young batsmen, an instrumental contributor to the success of these batsmen, and a true role model that the likes of Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq, Ahmed Shehzad, Shan Masood all look up to.

Younis has built partnerships with each one of the above mentioned batsmen that have taken Pakistan to great achievements. There is a reason why no one else from Pakistan has been a part of as many century partnerships in tests than Younis Khan has. He scores runs himself and he enables his partner to accumulate plenty of runs as well.

Each of Azhar Ali, Shan Masood, Asad Shafiq, Fawad Alam, and Umar Akmal will tell you a story about how Younis Khan helped them reach their first test hundred. Many others will tell you how easy Younis makes it for his partners while he is at the crease. Pakistan's coaches will tell you how hardworking and dedicated Younis Khan is. Pakistan's test captains will tell you the impact Younis Khan has on the dressing room.

It is these things that cannot be measured by numbers that Younis Khan will be mostly remembered for.

MISBAH UL HAQ

Captain Fantastic!

From taking on the reigns of Pakistan's test team in 2010 following the spot fixing scandal to breaking all the captaincy records there are to break for Pakistan, Misbah Ul Haq has been an exceptional leader.

He has taken Pakistan's test cricket to heights never witnessed before. He took the team out of turmoil, instilled belief and confidence in them, developed a culture like never before, and achieved unprecedented results.

Misbah's achievements as a leader in whites are incomparable.

Never has Pakistan's test cricket seen such continuity in selection and such stability in a batting order over 6-7 years; credit for all of this is to Misbah who has led these men with aplomb.

Enabled by Misbah, the team has broken records, the batsmen have broken records, and Misbah himself has broken records. Such is the greatness of this test team that the records they have established since 2010 will probably remain Pakistan's records for a long time to come.

It doesn't matter whether Pakistan's test team is the number 1 test team in the world or on their worst ever losing streak in test cricket, Pakistan's test batsmen continue to rewrite history. They continue to establish records and set new benchmarks.

First it was Asad Shafiq, then Azhar Ali, and now it is Pakistan's one and only King Khan, the undisputed master of test cricket batting, Younis Khan.

Younis has been a man on a mission for the past half a decade. He has piled on the runs, broken all of Pakistan's batting records, scored more runs and centuries than any other Pakistani batsman, is n the verge of becoming the first batsman from Pakistan to score 10,000 test runs, and continues to reach new heights that even other international batsmen have not reached.

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Number of Test Centuries
His unbeaten century on the 3rd day at the SCG against Australia was his 34th test hundred. This places him level with legends like Sunil Gavaskar, Brian Lara, and Mahela Jayawardene. Only 5 batsmen have more test centuries than Younis now.

The Best from Pakistan by a StretchMost runs, most centuries, and highest average among all batsmen ever to play test cricket for Pakistan. That too by a stretch, for runs and centuries.

Foreign Test Hundreds
Two weeks ago Asad Shafiq became the only Pakistan batsman after Saeed Anwar to score a test century in each of Australia, South Africa, and England.

Now, Younis Khan has also achieved this feat.

Test Centuries in all Countries
When Younis Khan scored a century against Australia in the UAE in 2014, he became the first batsman from Pakistan and the twelfth from the world to score a test century against all test playing nations.

Now, when Younis has scored a century in Australia, he has become the only batsman in the world after Rahul Dravid to score a century in every test playing nation.

But there is something more unique about Younis Khan's feat. He has become the only batsman in the world to score a century in every country that has hosted a test match - the 10 test playing nations and the UAE!

Dravid never played a test in the UAE; while Yousuf, Sangakkara, and Jayawardene have not scored a test century in South Africa, West Indies, and South Africa respectively.

Best Performer vs Australia
Till two years ago, Younis Khan had no test century against Australia. Now, he has 4, which places him behind only Javed Miandad and Ijaz Ahmed, each of whom have scored 6 test centuries against Australia.

Younis also has the best average among all Pakistan batsmen who scored over 1,000 test runs against Australia.

Frequency & Conversion of Test Centuries
Among all test batsmen with at least 20 centuries, after Sir Donald Bradman, Younis Khan has the highest frequency of scoring a century, every 6.06 innings, and the best conversion ratio (CR) of 51.5%, which basically means that Younis coverts 51.5% of his fifties into hundreds.

Pakistan has lost the series against Australia. They may even go on to be cleanly swept 3-0. But this series will be remembered for some special innings by Pakistan's batsmen; this series will be remembered for Asad Shafiq at the Gabba, Azhar Ali at the MCG, and Younis Khan at the SCG.

Move over Hafeez, Pakistan has a new professor!

Younis Khan and what he has done for Pakistan cricket over the past decade is well documented on Well Pitched. Rarely does a Pakistan test series go by without us mentioning the great achievements of the one and only King Khan.

This series against England is no different. It could have been following the horrendous hopping and jumping Younis did during his 6 innings in the first 3 tests of the series. However, like all great batsmen who can't be kep quiet for too long, Younis found his feet again at the Oval and reminded the world why he is among the best batsmen in the business.
Younis Khan's monumental innings at the Oval, his 6th double hundred, was a batting masterclass that educated everyone on how to construct a test innings. It was so beautifully executed that one can put it on repeat and use it to educate generations.
Younis Khan went through every phase of his innings with perfection. From caution at the start, to aggression once set, to caution with the second new ball, to continued watchfulness at the start of day 3, to aggression when batting with the tail. It was mastery at its best.

On day 3 he actually batted as if he was starting a new innings, rather than batting like someone who had already scored a century.

There are so many examples of batsmen reaching their test centuries with Younis at the other end and at the Oval Asad Shafiq added one more to that list. When Younis is at the crease for a long period of time, he not only scores big himself, he also guides his partner to significant contributions.

Besides Shafiq's century, Younis also guided Pakistan's tail, arguably the worst tail in test cricket at the moment, to decent contributions.

Pakistan's tail has been nonexistent in this series, yet he first shared a 37 run partnership with Wahab, where Wahab's contribution was 4 off 32, and then a 97 run partnership with Mohammad Amir for the 9th wicket, during which Amir reached his personal best (39*) in test cricket.

It was a true education by Younis Khan. A batting masterclass really that only he could have provided.