Pakistan needed a miracle at Edgbaston. A 21 year old debutant batting at number nine gave them one. Razaullah Khan walked out to bat with Pakistan reeling at 318 for 8 in the third and final Test against England. His side had already been bowled out for 133 in the first innings and trailed by 320 runs. Another innings defeat looked certain, and a 3-0 series whitewash looked even more certain.
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The Numbers Behind The Carnage
Razaullah scored 81 runs off just 63 balls. He hit four fours and nine sixes along the way. He reached his fifty in 43 deliveries, the fastest half-century by a Pakistani batter on Test debut, beating Faheem Ashraf’s 52-ball effort against Ireland in 2018.
He struck three sixes off Gus Atkinson in a single over. He then went after Jofra Archer, clearing the boundary twice more, including the six that brought up Pakistan’s 400. He shared a 121-run partnership with Mohammad Abbas, who scored a career-best 42. It stands as the highest ninth-wicket stand against England since 1984.
Records That Now Carry His Name
Razaullah’s nine sixes equalled Tim Southee’s 18-year-old record for the most sixes in a Test innings played in England, a mark Southee set against Napier in 2008. He also matched Ben Stokes’s record for most sixes by any batter in a single Test innings on English soil, set during the 2023 Ashes at Lord’s.
Keeping Pakistan In The Fight
Thanks to Razaullah, Pakistan were bowled out for 449, giving them a 129 run lead and forcing the match into a fourth day. England need 130 runs to complete a first three-Test whitewash on that ground since 2024. Razaullah was eventually stumped off Dan Lawrence, and walked off to a standing ovation.
