Pakistan had a bad end to its tour of England, but one player turned heads along the way. On September 11, 2026, debutant Razaullah scored 81 runs off 63 balls against England with nine sixes. The innings tied two long-standing Test records and pushed the deciding match into a fourth day. Our England vs Pakistan 2026 series guide has the full tour schedule and squads.
England still won the third Test by eight wickets and completed a 3-0 series sweep. Even so, Razaullah’s knock became the talk of the series. This article explains what he did, which records he tied, and whether expectations around him are fair.
Quick answer: Razaullah is a 21-year-old fast bowler from Mardan, Pakistan, who made his Test debut against England at Edgbaston in September 2026. He took four wickets in the match and then scored 81 off 63 balls at No. 9 with nine sixes. The innings included the fastest fifty by a Pakistan batter on Test debut and tied records set by Tim Southee and Ben Stokes.
What happened in the third Test at Edgbaston?
England won the toss and put Pakistan in to bat. Pakistan collapsed to 133 all out. The official scorecard on ESPNcricinfo shows the full match.
England replied with 453, helped by five half-centuries from Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Dan Lawrence, Emilio Gay, and Ollie Robinson. That put Pakistan 320 runs behind. When Pakistan batted again, the team needed something special just to avoid an innings defeat.
Shan Masood made 95, Babar Azam made 76, and Azan Awais made 59. Razaullah then turned the match on its head with 81, so Pakistan finished on 449. England needed 130 to win and chased that down with eight wickets in hand. The match ended on the fourth day.
The innings that changed the match
Razaullah walked in at No. 9 with Pakistan at 318 for 8, still two runs behind England. From that position England was close to winning inside three days.
Razaullah reached fifty off 43 balls. That is the fastest half-century by a Pakistan batter on Test debut, beating Faheem Ashraf’s 52 balls against Ireland in 2018. He shared a 121-run stand with Mohammad Abbas, who made 42. Together they took Pakistan past England’s total and at one point had the team 100 runs ahead.
England finally dismissed Razaullah, stumped by Jordan Cox off Dan Lawrence after he survived an lbw review. He left the field to a standing ovation. He also broke two bats during the innings and used a third, as BBC Sport reported.
The records Razaullah tied on debut
| Record | What Razaullah did | Who he tied |
|---|---|---|
| Most sixes on Test debut | 9 sixes in 81 off 63 | Tim Southee, 77 not out for New Zealand at Napier in March 2008 |
| Most sixes in a Test innings in England | 9 sixes | Ben Stokes, 155 for England against Australia at Lord’s in 2023 |
| Most runs by a debutant at No. 9 | 81 | Corbin Bosch, 81 not out for South Africa at Centurion in 2024 |
| Fastest fifty by a Pakistan batter on Test debut | 43 balls | None. Razaullah set this mark himself |
Sky Sports confirmed the Southee record and noted that Razaullah’s nine sixes matched Ben Stokes as the most ever hit in a Test innings in England.
Who is Razaullah?
Razaullah was born on 5 April 2005 in Mardan, a city in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in northwest Pakistan. His family comes from the Upper Dir area. He grew up idolizing Waqar Younis, Pakistan’s famous fast bowler, and learned the game at the Akmal Khan Cricket Academy in Mardan.
His career moved fast. He played district under-19 cricket in 2023 and then regional cricket for Abbottabad. In the 2024-25 President’s Trophy Grade II, he helped champion Sahir Associates win the title. For the 2025-26 season his numbers jumped: Dawn reported he took 30 wickets in five matches for Sahir Associates in the President’s Trophy. He also scored a first-class century, 100 off 95 balls, for Peshawar.
He made his Pakistan Super League debut for Rawalpindiz in April 2026. Our PSL explained guide covers that competition in detail.
A debut that started with the ball
Razaullah is a right-arm fast bowler, and that is why Pakistan picked him. He took 4 for 148 in England’s first innings. His first Test wicket was a big one: Joe Root, England’s captain, lbw on the fourth ball of Razaullah’s first over. He then removed Emilio Gay, who had made 60.
The pace stood out. His first two overs touched 92 mph and did not dip below 89 mph. ESPNcricinfo reported that only a handful of bowlers, including Mark Wood and Jofra Archer, delivered faster first spells in England since 2010. Razaullah bowled 23 overs in that first innings and took four wickets.
Why Pakistan played so many new players
Razaullah was not a planned starter. Pakistan entered the third Test at Edgbaston after losing the first two matches, at Headingley by an innings and 103 runs and at Lord’s by 194 runs. The Pakistan Cricket Board made sweeping changes after the Lord’s defeat. It sacked head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed, sent seven players home, and brought in seven replacements.
Razaullah was one of those replacements and one of five uncapped players in the squad. Interim head coach Mike Hesson reportedly took a liking to him during the overhaul. PCB high-performance director Aaqib Javed also noticed Razaullah’s work at the National Cricket Academy and invited him to a fast-bowling camp in late August. According to reports carried by Gulf News, selectors could not reach him by phone at first because his phone was switched off. He joined the squad in England after arriving with only days to spare.
What this means for Pakistan
Razaullah gave Pakistan a rare bright spot in a difficult tour. Playing Test cricket in England is a different challenge. The Dukes ball moves off the seam and swing persists longer than in most other countries. Pakistan’s top order had not passed 200 in any of the first five innings of the series, a pattern rooted in both selection chaos and the tough conditions. Against that backdrop, Razaullah’s 81 showed real adaptability. Pakistan sits near the bottom of the current World Test Championship standings.
Babar Azam’s 76 also deserves credit. The captain looked more settled in the second innings. The BBC wrote that a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Pakistan’s batters finally passed 200 in the series for the first time at the sixth attempt, and they did it in a match where the team trailed by 320 runs.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan told BBC’s Test Match Special that Pakistan had found a gem. Former Pakistan captain Urooj Mumtaz called the debut “a perfectly written first chapter.” Those words were about one innings, not a finished career.
Watch the innings: These official highlights were published by the England and Wales Cricket Board.
A note of caution
One great innings does not guarantee a long Test career. Pakistan has seen young players produce a spark and then struggle once teams work them out. Razaullah has played only a handful of first-class matches, so the sample size is small.
His first-class record is strong on paper: 34 wickets and a century from nine matches. Sustaining that pace and improving his accuracy over five-day cricket will decide how far he goes. For now, the sensible summary is simple. Razaullah is a genuine talent, and his debut deserves real attention without wild predictions.
Frequently asked questions
How many sixes did Razaullah hit on his Test debut?
Razaullah hit nine sixes in his innings of 81 off 63 balls. That equals the record for most sixes on Test debut set by Tim Southee in 2008.
Who did Razaullah dismiss on debut?
He took four wickets, all in England’s first innings. His first Test wicket was captain Joe Root, lbw on the fourth ball of his first over. Emilio Gay was another victim.
Is Razaullah a fast bowler or a batter?
He is a right-arm fast bowler who bats right-handed. He bats at No. 9 in Tests but scored a first-class century as an opener, so he can bat higher if needed.
Did Pakistan win the third Test against England?
No. England won by eight wickets after chasing a target of 130. The win gave England a 3-0 series sweep.
Why did Pakistan bring in so many new players for the Edgbaston Test?
Pakistan lost the first two Tests badly and the board responded by sacking head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed, sending seven players home, and adding seven replacements including five uncapped players.
Razaullah’s debut gave Pakistan fans a reason to look forward even after a 3-0 series defeat. The records he tied prove the innings was no accident. Whether he becomes a lasting Test star depends on how he develops. That is the question Pakistan’s selectors and Razaullah himself will now try to answer.
