Pakistan’s young batting sensation, Abdullah Shafique, left the cricketing world in awe as he played a match-winning knock in the final innings of the first Test match against Sri Lanka. Shafique’s magnificent century in the fourth innings steered Pakistan to a historic win as they registered their second-highest run chase in Test history and the highest ever run chase at Galle Cricket Stadium.
The 22-year-old struck 160 runs off 408 balls, his second Test century, as Pakistan chased down a target of 342 on the final day of the Test match. He was awarded the player of the match for his marathon innings.
Shafique has witnessed a meteoric rise in Test cricket. In only his 6th Test match, he has already broken some impressive batting records.
The flamboyant opener has already surpassed legendary batter, Javed Miandad, as the highest-scoring Pakistani batter in the first 6 Tests of their international careers. Overall, he is fourth on the list of the highest run-scorers after the first six Test matches, having scored 720 runs at an average of 80.00 in 11 innings.
Former Indian opener, Sunil Gavaskar, leads the list with 912 runs while legendary Australian batter, Don Bradman, is second on the list with 862 runs. Former West Indian batter, George Headley, is third with 730 runs. It is pertinent to mention here that Abdullah Shafique’s 711 runs have come in 11 innings compared to 12 of the legends above him on the list.
Here are the leading run scorers after the first six Tests:
| Player | Country | Innings | Runs | Average |
| Sunil Gavaskar | India | 12 | 912 | 101.33 |
| Don Bradman | Australia | 12 | 862 | 78.36 |
| George Headley | West Indies | 12 | 730 | 60.83 |
| Abdullah Shafique | Pakistan | 11 | 720 | 80.00 |
| Frank Worrell | West Indies | 9 | 695 | 99.28 |
