Pakistan wicketkeeper Sarfaraz Ahmed was recently allowed to continue as captain by the new management, under Misbah-ul-Haq, and that has allowed him to enter the record books.
As he walked out for the third and final ODI against Sri Lanka in Karachi on Wednesday, Sarfaraz made it 50 ODIs as captain. He thus became only the second wicketkeeper to reach the mark in one-dayers after India legend MS Dhoni.
Dhoni captained India as a gloveman 200 times in ODIs, which is four times more than any other player in history.
Zimbabwe's Andy Flower (46) and Sri Lankan Kumar Sangakkara (45) are the other keepers behind Sarfaraz on the list.
Coming into the match, Sarfaraz's record stood at 27 wins and 20 defeats as captain. Dhoni's record is far superior – 110 wins and 74 defeats.
Sarfaraz also became the seventh Pakistan captain to lead his team in 50 or more ODIs. Imran Khan, the current Prime Minister, is the only Pakistan player with more than 100 ODIs as leader.
Before he was made captain last month, there was speculation over Sarfaraz's future as leader as the Pakistan board had refused to extend Mickey Arthur's tenure as coach. Sarfaraz's position also seemed under threat but the management decided to have some stability and continuity, especially since the men in green fought valiantly in the second half of the 2019 World Cup and missed out on semi-final qualification over net run rate.
"I am aware we have not done justice to our potential in ODIs, which has disappointed us as well as our fans," Sarfaraz had said. "I am hopeful we will be able to turn things around in the coming season and in this relation. I remain committed to stepping up to the challenge with my performances and captaincy."
