Azhar Ali: the patient batsman with a sound technique

In the T20 era, when fast scoring dominated the game, Pakistan had a batsman who stood at the crease for hours and turned the course of matches. This was Azhar Ali. According to ESPNcricinfo, with a sound technique and immense patience, he became one of Pakistan’s finest batsmen of his time³. In 97 Tests, he scored 7,142 runs at an average of 42.26 and hit 19 centuries, including an innings of 302 not out¹.

Early life and start in cricket

Azhar Ali was born in Lahore on 19 February 1985. He is a right-handed batsman and occasionally bowled leg-breaks. He began his first-class career in 2002 and was part of Pakistan’s Under-19 World Cup squad the same year⁴. In domestic cricket, he represented Khan Research Laboratories and Lahore, and he also played for Somerset in England²³.

According to ESPNcricinfo, he began opening regularly for Khan Research Laboratories in 2006, and his technique was built to get behind the line of every ball. On Pakistan A’s tour of Australia in 2009, he played two innings of 70, each lasting five hours, against bowlers such as Doug Bollinger, Clint McKay and Jason Krejza. That tour brought him to the national team².

On 13 July 2010, in the first Test against Australia at Lord’s, he batted at number three and scored 16 and 42. On 21 July 2010, at Leeds, chasing a target of 180, he scored his first half-century, making 51¹².

A long run of centuries

He had to wait for his first Test century. After ten half-centuries, he scored 100 against Sri Lanka in Dubai on 26 October 2011. The series against England in the United Arab Emirates in 2011-12 followed. On 3 February 2012 in Dubai, he scored 157 off 442 balls in the second innings¹. According to ESPNcricinfo, in that bowler-dominated series he was the only batsman on either side to average more than 50².

His notable innings include 157 and 136 in Colombo and Pallekele in Sri Lanka in June and July 2012; 109 and 100 not out in the same Test against Australia in Abu Dhabi in October 2014; and 226 against Bangladesh in Mirpur in May 2015¹.

2016: the most memorable year

According to ESPNcricinfo, 2016 was his most successful year, in which he scored more than a thousand runs. On 13 October 2016 in Dubai, against West Indies, he scored 302 not out in 658 minutes off 469 balls, his highest Test score. On 26 December the same year, he scored 205 not out against Australia in Melbourne. According to the profile, Pakistan lost that match by an innings and no other Pakistan batsman got past 65¹³.

Captaincy and the Champions Trophy

According to ESPNcricinfo, after the 2015 World Cup he replaced Misbah-ul-Haq as ODI captain. Under his captaincy, Pakistan won 12 ODIs and lost 18, and he gave up the captaincy in February 2017³. As captain, he scored ODI centuries of 101 against Bangladesh in Mirpur in April 2015, 102 against Zimbabwe in Lahore in May 2015 and 101 against West Indies in Abu Dhabi in October 2016¹.

That year Pakistan won the Champions Trophy, and according to ESPNcricinfo, Azhar Ali scored half-centuries in both the semi-final and the final³: 76 against England in Cardiff on 14 June 2017 and 59 against India at The Oval on 18 June¹.

In 2019, he was appointed Test captain. Under his leadership, Pakistan beat Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in home series. Less than a year later, the role was handed to Babar Azam³. His highest innings as captain was 141 not out against England in Southampton in August 2020¹.

Statistics

Source: ESPNcricinfo Statsguru¹. The figures are for his international career.

Impact and legacy

His 185 against Australia in Rawalpindi in March 2022 was his last big Test innings. He played his last Test against England in Karachi on 17 December 2022, scoring 45 and 0. In the 41 Tests that Pakistan won, he averaged 49.53 and scored 10 centuries¹.

According to ESPNcricinfo, he is a successful example of Pakistan’s player development system. In December 2024, he was appointed head of youth development at the Pakistan Cricket Board, and he is also a member of the national team’s selection committee⁴. Azhar Ali is remembered for those long, calm innings in which every ball was given its due.