LAHORE: Australian batter Steve Smith became the fastest man to score 8,000 runs as he moved past Sri Lanka legend Kumar Sangakkara to break a 12-year-long record during third match against Pakistan in Lahore.
When Australia’s number four reached seven in the second innings of the third Test against Pakistan, Smith became the fastest man to 8,000 runs, reaching the milestone in his 151st innings.
Smith eclipsed Kumar Sangakkara, who reached the mark in his 152nd innings. All-time great Sachin Tendulkar rounds out the podium, after the ‘Little Master’ brought up 8,000 Test runs in his 154th innings in 2002.
Garry Sobers (157 innings) is fourth on the list, while Rahul Dravid (158 innings) rounds up the top five. Boasting an overall Test batting average of over 60 with 27 centuries, the 32-year-old Smith will have plenty more records in his sight.
In 2019, Smith became the fastest to 7,000 Test runs in a home Test match against Pakistan. Since the 2019 Ashes series, Smith has scored just one century in his 29 innings prior to the current match in Lahore.
Among the other Australians to pass 8,000 Test runs, Smith soared past Matthew Hayden (164 innings), Ricky Ponting (165), Michael Clarke (172), Allan Border (184) and Steve Waugh (194).
The New South Wales batter is currently seventh on the all-time list of Australian Test batters while possessing the highest average in history for a minimum of 60 matches played.
Fastest players to 8,000 Test runs
151 innings – Steve Smith (Australia)
152 – Kumar Sangakkara (Sri Lanka)
154 – Sachin Tendulkar (India)
157 – Garfield Sobers (West Indies)
158 – Rahul Dravid (India)
