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England Opener Shatters Batting Records on Day 1 of First Test Against Pakistan

England’s opening batter, Zak Crawley, made history by scoring the fastest century by an England opener during the first Test against the home side, Pakistan, at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.

Crawley took a fantastic start on the opening day of the first Test match, scoring a century in just 86 balls and stitching a valuable opening partnership of 233 runs with Ben Duckett.

His score of 91* in the first session is also the third-highest by any batsman during the first session of a test match since 2008.  India’s Shikhar Dhawan holds the record for most runs in the first session since 2008 when he scored 104* against Afghanistan in 2018. Warner also scored 100* against Pakistan in the first session of Sydney Test in 2017.

Zak Crawley also became the fourth fastest century-maker in Test Cricket for England. The 24-year-old joined the list of Gilbert Jessop, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, and Ian Botham.

Batter Balls Opposition Year
Gilbert Jessop 76 Australia 1902
Jonny Bairstow 77 New Zealand 2022
Ben Stokes 85 New Zealand 2015
Ian Botham 86 Australia 1981
Zak Crawley 86 Pakistan 2022

It is pertinent to mention that Zak Crawley also holds the record for the highest England partnership against Pakistan in Tests at any wicket, with 359 runs scored alongside Buttler in 2020.

With 233 runs, today’s stand with Ben Duckett, the 24-year-old batter has now become part of England’s highest opening partnership against Pakistan.

It must also be mentioned that England has never scored more runs in the first session of a Test match in its 145-year history of playing Test cricket than they did today. They scored 174 runs in the first session.

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Published by
Imad Ali Jan