Pakistan captain Babar was replaced by England's Dawid Malan as officially the best batsman on the planet in the shortest format in September after he was in the runs against Australia.
Babar has spent a cumulative 774 days as number one across four stretches since January 2018 and is only eight rating points shy of Malan.
Pakistan have won all 11 T20 contests with Zimbabwe and the classy Babar will see three games against the tourists as a golden opportunity to dislodge Malan.
Yet Zimbabwe come into the first match of the series on Saturday on a high from a shock Super Over victory that prevented them from suffering a 3-0 ODI whitewash at the hands of Pakistan.
We use Opta data to preview the series in Rawalpindi.
- Pakistan beat Bangladesh in each of their two other T20 matches at home this year. They had suffered three defeats on the spin on their own patch before those victories.
- Zimbabwe have been beaten in nine of their past 13 T20Is in Asia. Three of their four victories came against non-Test playing nations, but they beat Afghanistan in September 2019.
- Brendan Taylor has 878 runs at international level in the shortest format and is looking to join Hamilton Masakadza as the only Zimbabwe batsman to reach the 1,000 mark.
- Sean Williams heads into this contest on the back of scoring a fourth ODI century (118 not out), at this venue in a famous win on Tuesday. He has made 58no and an unbeaten 40 in two of his past three T20 knocks versus Pakistan.
- Shaheen Afridi (23), Imad Wasim (22), Shadab Khan (21) and Haris Rauf (17) had more dot balls than any England bowlers in a drawn T20 series in August and September.
The tourists won another dramatic match by 26 runs on Monday to take an unassailable 2-0 lead.
Shakeel (94) and Mohammad Nawaz (45) appeared to have given Pakistan the upper hand with a sixth-wicket stand of 80, but both were removed in quick succession by Mark Wood.
Aleem Dar put his finger up after Shakeel edged a delivery from Wood down the leg side and third umpire Joel Wilson stayed with the on-field decision, seeing no evidence that Ollie Pope did not take the ball cleanly.
Pakistan captain Babar believes Shakeel should have remained in the middle.
He said: "The Shakeel dismissal cost us. It looked to us as if the ball had touched the ground. As a professional, you have to respect the umpire's decision, but we felt the ball had been grounded."
England skipper Ben Stokes had a different opinion on the incident.
He said: "I don't think [there were any doubts about the catch], personally. The only thing where you start worrying is when it gets looked at for a long period of time because that's when you start having doubt in your own head.
"I've been part of games before where I've been on the team who's been on the receiving end of those decisions and you're always like, 'that's not carried'.
"You see a lot of those decisions and those type of catches in cricket. You could say the similar thing was when Rooty [Joe Root] got caught at short leg - you could say that might have touched the floor.
"But you've just got to go with what the umpire's decision is. It went our way but I've been involved in a few decisions where stuff like that has gone against us. But you can't change that."
Australia will be playing their first Test in Pakistan for 24 years and the two nations will be competing for the honour of lifting the Benaud-Qadir Trophy for the first time.
Pakistan whitewashed Bangladesh 2-0 in their last Test series, but they will have to do without the injured Hasan Ali and Faheem Ashraf along with Haris Rauf – who tested positive for coronavirus.
Australia are top of the rankings after thrashing England 4-0 to retain the Ashes, but Babar says Pakistan can bring them back down to earth.
The Pakistan captain said: "It did disturb our combination, especially injuries to Faheem and Hasan. Faheem contributes both with ball and bat, and Hasan is one of the top bowlers, a proven match-winner.
"Still, we have Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah, who both are bowling well, and Fawad Alam and [Mohammad] Rizwan in good batting form. Australia is one of the best sides, we can't take it easy against them.
"We did well against Bangladesh. In this series, too, we will do well and give them a tough time. Fans can expect quality cricket from us."
Andrew McDonald has been installed as Australia's interim head coach after Justin Langer's departure.
Both Babar and Australia skipper Pat Cummins revealed they will wait until the coin toss to name their sides after they were unable to take a look at the pitch due to rain on Thursday.
Cummins said: "We're pretty sure [what the team will be] but we just want to have another look at the wicket, and we probably won't get the chance today, so we'll have a think late this arvo [afternoon] to work out the XI, or tomorrow morning,
"We've got a fair idea what we want to do, but don't want to make the call too early without fully knowing what the wicket is."
Australia were 1-0 winners in their last Test series in Pakistan back in 1998.
Babar to rack up the runs in Rawalpindi again?
Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium has been a happy hunting ground for run machine Babar.
The prolific skipper has scored two centuries and a half-century in his four Tests at the venue, where he averages 110 in the longest format.
Babar's last reached three figures in a Test in Rawalpindi just over two years ago, making 143 versus Bangladesh.
Warner a thorn in Pakistan's side
David Warner has a staggering average of 108.4 against Pakistan in the longest format – the best of any player in any history to have been at the crease at least six times against them.
That average soared after the Australia opener made a magnificent 335 not out when the Pakistan attack toiled in the second Test at Adelaide Oval in 2019. Warner also scored a hundred in the first match of that series, which Australia won 2-0.
Warner will be eager to put the misery of bagging a pair in his last Test, against England in Hobart, behind him when he bats in Pakistan for the first time in a Test.
Australia only took four wickets in a drawn opening match of the series as Imam-ul-Haq scored a century in both innings.
Captain Pat Cummins felt the pitch in Rawalpindi had been prepared to nullify the tourists' pace attack.
Pakistan skipper Babar felt his side might have forced a victory if they had not lost time due to the weather in the opening match of the series and is hopeful they will come out on top at the National Stadium,
He said: "We're not frightened of Australia. The conditions are the same for both teams, and the World Test Championship points are very crucial.
"As a captain, I wanted us to win. The way our side dominated, we had batters score 150-plus and [bowlers] get wickets. So there's nothing to panic about. We dominated.
"We didn't get a result, unfortunately, but that's not in our hands. If all the overs that were lost due to rain were played, maybe we'd have a different result."
Babar says Pakistan will not be taken by surprise when they face Australia spinner Mitchell Swepson, who will make his debut in Karachi.
The Pakistan skipper said: "I haven't seen much of him. We'll watch videos of him and plan accordingly. We've started practice here; i
"tt's quite hot and the conditions are different. We have momentum with us; we dominated the first Test and had great individual and team performances.
"The batters batted well, the bowlers took ten wickets, and Nauman six. The overall team performance was good and we're trying to take that momentum into this game."
Azhar nearing landmark
Azhar Ali made a magnificent 185 in the first Test as Pakistan piled on the runs in Rawalpindi.
The former captain is only 94 runs away from reaching the 7,000 run milestone in the longest format.
Azhar has scored four Test centuries against Australia and he will have a big part to play in Pakistan's quest to take a 1-0 lead.
Khawaja making up for lost time
Australia batter Usman Khawaja made a brilliant 97 in the opening Test as he continues to make up for lost time following his recall.
Khawaja made a century in both innings in January on his recall for the Sydney Cricket Ground Test against England in January.
The left-hander has registered a hundred and five half-centuries in his past eight Tests against his country of birth Pakistan and can set the tone at the top of the order once again.
Babar hit 69 runs off 44 balls before being bowled by Ben Sears, smashing six fours and two sixes to take his team to 123/3 at the time of his dismissal.
Fakhar Zaman (43 from 33) and Usman Khan (31 off 24) also chipped in with important innings as Pakistan ended on 178/5.
With a target of 179 to secure a 3-1 series victory, New Zealand's run chase faltered almost immediately as opener Tom Blundell was removed within the first over with his team having managed just five runs on the board.
Blundell's fellow opener Tim Seifert steadied the ship with a vital 52-run innings off 33 deliveries before being bowled by Usama Mir, but Shaheen Shah Afridi led the way for Pakistan, finishing with figures of 4-30 to stem the New Zealand run chase
Josh Clarkson's 38 off 26 set up a nervy conclusion, but Pakistan held on to avoid defeat in the T20 series as the teams share the spoils at two wins apiece after the first game was abandoned.
Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan had stated that the Tigers would only play three T20 matches against Pakistan this month.
Hassan said tension in the Middle East between Iran and the United States was the main reason they would only agree to a short trip to Pakistan.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Tuesday announced that a schedule of three T20s this month and Tests in February and April either side of a one-off ODI has been agreed.
PCB chairman Ehsan Mani said: "I am pleased that we have amicably achieved a resolution that is in the best interest of this great sport as well as both the proud cricket playing countries.
"I also want to thank ICC chairman Shaskank Manohar for the leadership he provided and ensured the sport continues to grow and thrive in the two countries."
The two sides will contests T20 encounters in Lahore on January 24, 25 and 27, with a first Test to get under way in Rawalpindi on February 7.
They will contest an ODI in Karachi on April 3, with the second Test starting in the same city two days later.
Only bad light and rain prevented Bangladesh from wrapping up a 2-0 series success on day four after they bowled Pakistan out for 172, Hasan Mahmud and Nahid Rana taking nine wickets between them.
Having resumed at 42 without loss, the tourists saw Zakir Hasan bowled clean by Mir Hamza for 40 early on, before Shadman Islam was caught by Shan Masood for 24 five overs later.
However, Pakistan's early wickets only delayed the inevitable as Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto (38) and Mominul Haque (34) took up the mantle to push them closer to their target.
Abdullah Shafique took a great catch at short leg to account for the former while Abrar Ahmed's ball saw the latter caught by Saim Ayub, but Bangladesh were already within 30 runs of victory by that point and would not be denied.
The experienced duo of Mushfiqur Rahim (22) and Shakib Al Hasan (21) were able to wrap things up serenely for the tourists, extending Pakistan's miserable winless run on home soil to 10 Tests.
Data Debrief: Rare overseas success for Bangladesh
Bangladesh had never previously recorded a series success over Pakistan, making the calm fashion in which they batted their way to victory on Tuesday all the more impressive.
The victory was just their fourth Test win on foreign soil in the last seven years, and this is only the third Test series they have ever won on their travels.
Their only previous series triumphs on foreign soil came versus West Indies in 2009 and in Zimbabwe three years ago.
Bangladesh were faced with a mountain to climb after day two as Pakistan declared at 448-6, but the tourists kept themselves in the contest in sweltering conditions on Friday.
Shadman set the tone with a composed 93 off 183 balls faced, steadying the ship after an early Pakistan onslaught led to the dismissals of Zakir Hasan (12) and Najmul Hossain Shanto (16).
His knock lasted over five-and-a-half hours before Mohammad Ali's delivery sent stumps flying at the end of the 66th over, but any hopes of that being the all-important breakthrough for Pakistan were frustrated.
Mominul Haque brought up his half-century before falling to Khurram Shahzad's off break, but sixth-wicket duo Mushfiqur and Litton would not be beaten.
They reached stumps still standing at 55 and 52 respectively, launching a fine counterattack late in the day as Pakistan struggled to get to grips with the new ball, with Bangladesh scoring 67 off the final 11 overs before stumps.
They still have it all to do if they are to inch ahead in the two-match series, though, with Pakistan maintaining a decent lead as they close in on the tourists' lower order.
Data Debrief: Pakistan attack frustrated
When Pakistan captain Shan Masood declared and put Bangladesh in with around an hour to go on day two, he might have been envisaging swift wickets and a comfortable first-innings lead.
By the end of day three, those hopes were in question thanks to excellent work from the Bangladesh batters, who relished the hostile conditions to trim Pakistan's advantage.
Some expensive bowling from Agha Salman (0-53), Shaheen Shah Afridi (0-55) and Naseem Shah (1-77) has not helped the hosts' cause, and they will demand better on Saturday.
The Test series between the teams was hampered by the weather as England claimed a 1-0 win, and it was more of the same on Friday.
England batted first but were unable to complete their innings, with a delay of almost two hours unable to give the field time to dry out for a truncated Pakistan response.
Opener Banton (71) at least had time to first impress with his maiden 50 at this level after an early scare.
England lost Jonny Bairstow in the first over, before Iftikhar Ahmed inexplicably dropped Banton off Shaheen Afridi at the end of the second.
Banton capitalised with a speedy knock, although Dawid Malan (23), his next partner, was run out as he wandered halfway down the wicket while his team-mate opted not to move.
Eoin Morgan (14) was at the other end as Banton - after four fours and five maximums - picked out Imad Wasim at extra cover, and then the captain was trapped leg before.
Further wickets followed with greater frequency - all-rounders Moeen Ali and Lewis Gregory dismissed for single-figure scores - but the rain, with England 131-6 after 16.1 overs, denied Pakistan the chance to have a say.
The Proteas went down by 28 runs in a high-scoring decider in the third and final one-dayer on Wednesday, coming up short in their run chase after the tourists had posted 320-7.
Bavuma suffered a strained hamstring while batting and will not be available for the first T20 contest on Saturday, which takes place at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg and will play no part in the series.
Heinrich Klaasen will lead the Proteas in the absence of batsman Bavuma, while the in-form Rassie van der Dussen is undergoing treatment on a quad muscle strain and Dwaine Pretorius misses out with a fractured rib.
Reeza Hendricks is also absent following the recent birth of his first child, with Quinton de Kock, David Miller, Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje playing in the Indian Premier League.
Aiden Markram, Andile Phehlukwayo, Daryn Dupavillon and Wiaan Mulder have been retained from the ODI squad.
Pakistan, meanwhile, will be hoping for further white-ball success, having come out on top by a 2-1 scoreline when they hosted their opponents in T20 action earlier this year.
They have added Fakhar Zaman to their squad following his outstanding form in the 50-over fixtures on South African soil.
The opening batsman followed up his 193 in a losing cause in the second game last Sunday with a crucial knock of 103 in the winner-takes-all showdown, with back-to-back centuries moving him up to number 12 in the ICC rankings.
However, Shadab Khan is ruled out due to a fractured toe. The all-rounder will be sidelined for a month, meaning he will also miss the upcoming tour to Zimbabwe. Zahid Mahmood has been named as his replacement for the T20 games on that trip.
Opportunity knocks in absence of Proteas stars
South Africa have failed to win their last five series' in the shortest format and you have to go back to the 2019 whitewash of Sri Lanka for their last triumph.
Miller was man of the series in that 3-0 triumph but the dangerous batsman is among the key absentees for the Proteas' next assignment.
With a T20 World Cup to come in India this year, the players who get their opportunity must grasp it and stake a claim for a place in the squad.
Will Fakhar get his chance?
The left-hander's twin hundreds boosted his career average in ODI action to 49.17. However, his T20 record at the highest level is not so hot, as he has averages 22.05 in his previous 40 appearances.
Pakistan are not short of options to bat at the top of the order, either. Captain Babar Azam has tended to open the innings, while Mohammad Rizwan scored a century - just his country's second in the format - when batting there in the home series against South Africa earlier this year.
The Black Caps beat Pakistan 2-1 in the Twenty20 International series and will be expected to inflict more misery on the tourists in the longest format.
A whitewash along with a heavy defeat for second-placed India against leaders Australia could see New Zealand return to Lord's for the World Test Championship decider, due to be staged next June.
Mohammad Rizwan will captain Pakistan in the first Test and may also have to lead the side in the second at Hagley Oval if Babar Azam has not recovered from a fractured thumb.
Opening batsman Imam-ul-Haq (thumb) and all-rounder Shadab Khan (thigh) will also miss out in Mount Maunganui, with spinner Zafar Gohar drafted into the squad.
New Zealand have lost just two of their previous 13 Test series, winning 10 and drawing one, and have come out on top in their last two versus Pakistan.
The Black Caps were far too good for West Indies recently, claiming back-to-back innings victories.
MISBAH HOPEFUL OVER BABAR
Losing world-class batsman Babar to an injury that kept him out of the T20I series was a huge blow for the tourists.
The prolific skipper will be sorely missed in Mount Maunganui, but head coach Misbah-ul-Haq hopes he will be back to lead the side in the second Test in Christchurch.
"We are hopeful that Babar will be fit for the second Test," Misbah said. "He has started gripping the bat and practising with a tennis ball.
"You can't really predict much with injuries like that but I just hope he gets better in five or six days and he has about eight days or so to get ready, which would be a big boost for us."
Pakistan have won only one of their last seven multi-game bilateral Test series outside of their own country - losing five and drawing one.
Their solitary victory was a 1-0 triumph over Australia in the United Arab Emirates in October 2018.
KANE ABLE TO LEAD BLACK CAPS, PAKISTAN SHOULD BE WARY OF WAGNER
Kane Williamson missed the Black Caps' hammering of the Windies in the second Test in Wellington following the birth of his first child, with Tom Latham stepping in.
He had struck a magnificent 251 in the first Test, a career-best in the longest format.
There was no place for Devon Conway in the squad to take on Pakistan, but Will Young retained his spot as batting cover and all-rounder Daryl Mitchell was also selected with Colin de Grandhomme (ankle) ruled out.
Pakistan must be wary of Neil Wagner, who has fond memories from the only previous men's Test to be played at Bay Oval - claiming match figures of 8-134 against England in November 2019.
Wagner has taken 21 Test wickets since the start of last year when pitching the ball short of a length, six more than anybody else during that period.
KEY OPTA FACTS
- Tim Southee is four scalps away from becoming just the third player to take 300 wickets for New Zealand (431) and Daniel Vettori (361) being the others.
- Ross Taylor needs another 95 runs to become the fourth player to score 1,000 in men's Tests between New Zealand and Pakistan. He would be the first Black Caps player to achieve a feat Javed Miandad, Asif Iqbal and Inzamam-ul-Haq can boast.
- Pakistan have won more Tests against New Zealand (25) than they have against any other opponent.
- Rizwan has a catch success rate of 95.5 per cent in Tests since the start 2018 (21/22); the highest rate of any player to claim more than 10 catches across that period.
Sam Curran (3-12) and Adil Rashid (2-22) bowled superbly to restrict Pakistan to just 137-8, though England's chase did not get off to the greatest of starts as openers Alex Hales and Jos Buttler were removed within the powerplay.
Stokes came in with England 32-2 after 3.3 overs, but smashed a sublime 52 off 49 deliveries to record his first ever T20I half-century and help his country to their second T20 World Cup title.
Stokes was keen to highlight England's bowlers as the reason for the win at the MCG in Melbourne, telling Sky Sports: "I think when you chase totals in games like this, you forget the hard work that goes in before.
"I thought the way that we bowled, Adil Rashid, Sam Curran, that's what won us the game. To restrict them to whatever we did, bowlers have got to take a lot of credit for that.
"We didn't feel under too much pressure with the run chase. I never felt it was out of our hands at all. It's never really panic stations when it's under eight an over."
England's triumph comes after a shock defeat to Ireland in the group stage that threatened to derail their tournament, having come in as one of the favourites.
Stokes referenced that loss after the final victory, saying: "I think with that [Ireland defeat] being so early in the competition, we obviously had to address it, say what we said and then let it go.
"In tournaments, you can't carry baggage. That was a little blip, but the best teams learn from their mistakes, they take it on the chin but they never let it affect them and they just let it go and move onto the next challenge."
England's success comes in new captain Jos Buttler's first tournament since taking over from previous incumbent Eoin Morgan, who led the team to ODI World Cup glory in 2019.
Stokes says Buttler has built on Morgan's good work to create history of his own, adding: "Jos has now created his own legacy.
"When the great man stepped down [pointing to Morgan] and Jos took over, you look how quickly he's managed to take control of the team and progress it from the legacy that Morgs [Morgan] has left.
"He's a guy who everyone follows. I think it shouldn't be taken for granted how hard it can be to make tactical decisions under pressure in this format. Ninety-five per cent of his decision-making he's got right. We're lucky to have him."
West Indies had bowled out their opponents for 217 on the opening day of the two-match series, only to then slip to 2-2 late in Thursday's proceedings when Mohammad Abbas struck twice.
It seemed they could struggle to get even close to parity when they slipped to 100-5 during day two, but Brathwaite stood firm to make sure his side claimed a first-innings lead.
The opening batsman hit 12 fours as he patiently worked his way to 97 but, with a hundred in sight, was caught short by Hasan Ali's direct hit from fine leg to depart.
Jason Holder contributed 58 as he added 96 for the sixth wicket with the man who replaced him as skipper, the former's fluent 108-ball knock including 10 boundaries.
Abbas dismissed Kemar Roach lbw in the closing overs, giving him figures of 3-42 in the match, while Shaheen Shah Afridi ended with 2-59.
However, Joshua Da Silva was unbeaten on 20 alongside Jomel Warrican, who will resume on one not out, as West Indies closed at 251-8, already holding what could be a crucial 34-run advantage in a potentially low-scoring contest.
Coming up short
Brathwaite appeared to be working his way towards a 10th Test century and a second of the calendar year, having made 126 against Sri Lanka back in March. While unable to make it to the milestone in the end, his defiant innings made sure West Indies hold the upper hand at Sabina Park.
Afridi strikes twice but hosts recover
Pakistan will feel they let West Indies off the hook, particularly after Afridi dismissed Jermaine Blackwood – whose ambitious attempt to hit over the top on 22 only found Abbas at mid-on – and Kyle Mayers with successive deliveries in the second session. They will hope to wrap up the tail quickly on day three.
The tourists looked to have given themselves a great chance of going 2-0 up by posting 199-5 at the National Stadium in Karachi on Thursday, but Babar and Rizwan stole the show with a stunning world record stand in a T20I run chase of 203.
Shahnawaz Dahani (2-37) struck twice in as many balls to get rid of Alex Hales (26) and Dawid Malan (0) before Phil Salt fell for 30, with Moeen Ali having won the toss and elected to bat first.
Ben Duckett hit a quickfire 43 and Harry Brook a brisk 31, with stand-in captain Moeen then blasting an unbeaten 55 from only 23 deliveries to set Pakistan 200 to win, Haris Rauf taking 2-30 from his four overs.
Skipper Babar and Rizwan showed their class as they brought up a century stand in just 69 balls, Hales left to rue dropping the wicketkeeper-batter on 23 as he made a third consecutive half-century.
The prolific Babar brought up his hundred in the 18th over and finished unbeaten on 110 from 66 balls in a masterclass, with the in-form Rizwan 88 not out off 51 deliveries as England were left not knowing what had him them.
Babar cleared the rope six five times and hit 11 fours, while Rizwan launched four sixes and five fours as they showed a combination of timing and power.
Babar reaches another milestone in style
The incredible Babar surged past the 8,000-run mark in T20s in his latest masterful knock. He reached that milestone in his 218 innings, with only Chris Gayle (213) needing fewer to rack up 8,000.
He also now holds the record for the most centuries as Pakistan captain with 10 ahead of the great Inzamam-ul-Haq.
Moeen fireworks in vain, Duckett catches the eye
While England were unable to make an impact in the field due to the brilliant of Pakistan's openers, they impressed with the bat.
Moeen hit four sixes and as many fours, while Duckett looked in great touch before he departed when well set, hitting seven boundaries.
The tourists were 43-2 at one stage after Abid Ali and Azhar Ali, who had opted to bat after winning the toss, were dismissed by Jofra Archer and Chris Woakes respectively at Old Trafford.
However, Babar then took centre stage with a majestic 69 not out, while Masood was still there on 46 as Pakistan reached 139-2 when play was abandoned due to bad light.
Buttler dropped Masood on 45 and the opener was still on the same score when the England wicketkeeper-batsman missed a chance to stump him during a day when just 49 overs were bowled.
England, unchanged following their series-clinching win over West Indies at the same venue, were below par, Babar in particular making them pay in what is Pakistan's first Test since February.
Masood and Abid came through probing new-ball spells from James Anderson and the in-form Stuart Broad, but the excellent Archer struck with the first ball of his second over.
Abid was the man to depart, paceman Archer rocking back his off stump with a delivery that nipped in to end an opening stand of 36. Azhar soon followed lbw to Woakes, the visiting captain also wasting a review.
Babar and Masood steadied the ship in contrasting fashion, the opener continuing to dig in as Pakistan's white-ball skipper played with greater fluency after lunch.
The elegant Babar showed great timing with glorious drives, racing to his 50 off 70 balls, though Masood had a stroke of luck when he nicked Dom Bess behind but Buttler failed to hold on.
An early tea was taken due to rain with Pakistan on 121-2 and there was further frustration for England in a short resumption, Buttler unable to stump an advancing Masood off Bess, with Joe Root forced to bowl himself due to the poor overhead conditions.
After a fine showing in the recent series victory over South Africa, Babar replaced his India rival at the summit with 865 points to Kohli's 857.
Babar scored 103 in the opening fixture against the Proteas and closed the three-match showdown with a fine 94, earning the player of the match award.
"This is another milestone in my career, which will now require even more hard work and absolute consistency with the bat in order for me to hold on to the ranking for an extended period of time, like Sir Vivian Richards from January 1984 to October 1988 and Virat Kohli for 1,258 days," said Babar, who is sixth in the Test rankings and third in the T20I format.
"I have also previously topped the T20I rankings, but the ultimate ambition and goal is to lead the Test rankings, which are the real testament and reward to a batsman's calibre, reputation and skills.
"I understand to achieve this objective, I will not only have to perform consistently, but more importantly, against the top sides.
"I am looking forward to this challenge and remain confident I will be able to accomplish this target with the support of my team-mates and coaching staff."
Babar has played 80 ODIs, scoring 3,808 runs at an average of 56.83, a strike rate of 88.7, and with a highest score of 125 not out.
Pakistan were set a 506-run target and lost two wickets early on, yet they fought back valiantly thanks to skipper Azam (102 not out) and opener Abdullah Shafique (71 not out).
The hosts reached 192-2 at the end of play on Tuesday in Karachi, leaving them requiring 314 runs on the final day to go nine Tests unbeaten against Australia at this venue.
Australia resumed their second innings at 81-1 and batted for half an hour before declaring on 97-2, with Marnus Labuschagne (44) and David Warner (seven) the men to fall.
If Pakistan's task looked tough at that point, it soon become even more daunting as they lost Imam-ul-Haq (one) and Azhar Ali (six) early on in their reply.
Azhar fell to Cameron Green when attempting to evade a short-pitched delivery, though replays showed he gloved the ball and would have stayed had it been reviewed.
Those wickets either side of lunch, with Imam trapped lbw from the bowling of Nathan Lyon, looked set to have Australia on course for victory inside four days.
But Shafique hit three boundaries and a six, while Babar hit seven boundaries in his knock to ensure Pakistan remain in with a fighting chance of avoiding defeat on home soil.
Stumps it is! Another tough day, but it would be fair to say that our boys came out owning it#BoysReadyHain l #PAKvAUS pic.twitter.com/VtRpO0Vhis
— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) March 15, 2022 Pakistan fightback led by Babar
Babar's batting average of 65.7 from four innings at the National Stadium prior to this Test is his highest at any venue where he has batted more than two innings.
The hosts' inspirational skipper once again led from the front with what was his first Test century in more than two years, spanning across 21 innings.
The hope that kills you
Pakistan's previous highest successful chase came against Sri Lanka in 2015 when set a 377 run target, so history will be made if they can dig in on Tuesday.
If they can make it to the final session of the day with some wickets in hand, the hosts would no doubt consider a draw as being like a victory.
Pakistan set England a target of 161, led by opener Shan Masood top-scoring with 39 runs off 22 deliveries, while David Willey impressed with the ball by taking two wickets for England.
England opener Phil Salt was bowled by Naseem Shah for just one run, but a rapid innings from Stokes (36 off 18), coupled with Liam Livingstone's 28, put England in good stead to secure victory by the time of their dismissals.
Brook scored 45 not out from 24 balls and Sam Curran smashed an unbeaten 33 from just 14 to finish the job as England chased down Pakistan's total in just 14.4 overs.
England middle order impresses
With their openers producing a combined 10 runs off 16 balls, it fell on the middle order to win England the match, and they did so in thrilling fashion.
Stokes, Livingstone, Brook and Curran smashed the ball to all areas and accounted for all 12 of their team's sixes.
Each of that quartet finished with strike rates of at least 175 to help England to a morale-boosting victory before their World Cup campaign gets underway against Afghanistan on Saturday.
Jordan improves after tough start
Pakistan ended up on 160-8 from 19 overs, with the match shortened slightly due to a brief rain stoppage.
They had threatened a bigger total, with Chris Jordan smashed for 27 off his first two overs without taking a wicket, but the England bowler steadied the ship to finish with figures of 1-36 from four, including a final over which went for just three runs and included the wicket of Mohammad Wasim (26).
Jordan's bowling at the death ensured England's target was achievable, and they then chased it down comfortably.
Brook became the first England batter in 34 years to score a triple-century when his side thrashed Pakistan by an innings and 47 runs in their first Test of the three-match series.
In the same Test, Root scored 262, and in doing so he passed Alastair Cook's previous England best of 12,472 career runs, placing him fifth on the all-time list.
Brook's career-best knock of 317 took him to 1,875 runs in 19 Tests and 31 innings ahead of the second encounter in Multan that starts on Monday.
The 25-year-old has a chance to become the fastest Englishman to 2,000 Test runs, beating the 22 matches and 33 innings of Herbert Sutcliffe in 1928.
And Anderson, who is England's all-time leading wicket taker in Test matches, showered praise on Brook, likening him to Kevin Pietersen.
"He's on the way to being in the top three that I've played with," Anderson said on his Tailenders podcast.
"It's Root, Pietersen and him. He's definitely got all the attributes to overtake them.
"He's just got everything. Without trying to big him up too much because he's still really early in his Test career.
"I do think that he's got the perfect amount of each of those two and that's what will make him the best that we've ever had."
Pietersen scored 8,181 runs when his 104-Test career ended in 2014, 170 fewer than Brook has managed after 19 Tests as a comparison.
England's stunning 823-7 declared was their highest total in Test cricket since 1938 as they took a 1-0 series lead against Pakistan on Friday.
The 556 England conceded in Pakistan’s first innings was the highest total any team had overturned to then go on and earn an innings victory.
Brook and Root shared a partnership of 454, England’s highest of all time for any wicket and the fourth-highest by any Test pair.
"The thing that's really similar between Joe and Harry is that they love batting," said Anderson. "They literally couldn't care less what format it is. They just want to bat.
"They want to have fun doing it. As much as Harry's the younger player and will be learning loads from Rooty, I still think Rooty learns from him as well.
"Joe's one of those sorts of players that wants to keep developing and bettering himself, and he does watch other players and try to add bits to his game.
"I'm sure he's doing that with Harry."
Brook scored 111 as England posted a first innings total of 354 on day two of the third Test in Karachi, taking a first innings lead of 50, though the hosts cut that to 29 after finishing the day on 21 without loss.
The 23-year-old has made three centuries in three Tests during the tour of Pakistan, vindicating captain Ben Stokes' decision to pick him as a replacement for Bairstow, who enjoyed a free-scoring 2022 before a freak leg injury ruled him out for several months.
Bairstow will be eyeing a return ahead of next year's Ashes series, and Brook says he would back him for an immediate recall, though hopes his own scintillating form has thrown a wrench into the plans of England's selectors.
Brook also broke Alastair Cook's record of 450 runs from 2015-16 to score the most runs by an English men's cricketer in an overseas Test series against Pakistan.
"Most selectors say they like headaches, so hopefully I've caused a very big migraine," he said after the close of play on Sunday. "It's too hard to say at the moment.
"I think Jonny is one of the best players, if not the best player, in the world. He was this summer anyway. For me, he comes straight back into the side.
"Obviously, I'm not selecting the team, but he's such a big player for the side, and he has been for so many years."
Brook acknowledged he had exceeded his own expectations with his form in Pakistan, after his latest century steered England ahead in the third and final Test of a series they have already won.
Having also helped England to the T20 World Cup in Australia, Brook said he is enjoying his achievements on tour.
"I actually said to one of my mates before I came out here that I would love to get two hundreds out here," he added. "So obviously to go one better is a very nice feeling."
