Mohammad Yousuf. — PHOTO: AFP

KARACHI: Mohammad Yousuf broke the 30-year-old world record of most Test runs in a calendar year on Thursday with his ninth century in 2006 as Pakistan pushed the West Indies into a tight corner in the third and final cricket Test.

Yousuf followed up his century in the first innings with another elegant knock of 124 off 195 balls, hitting fifteen 4s, before Pakistan declared its second innings at 399 for six for a mammoth overall lead of 443 runs.

Captain Inzamam-ul-Haq scored his first half century in six Tests and remained unbeaten on 58 off 91 balls.

West Indies lost its openers to pacemen Umar Gul and Shahid Nazir and wobbled to 39 for two at stumps on the fourth day. Brian Lara holds the West Indies's hopes with an unbeaten 18, while Ramnaresh Sarwan was not out on 11 when bad light stopped play 10 overs before scheduled close.

Yousuf drove paceman Corey Collymore to the mid-on boundary to reach 48 before lunch and surpassed Viv Richards's record of 1,710 made by the former West Indies captain in 11 Tests in 1976.

Yousuf plundered 665 runs in five innings — including four centuries — in the three Tests against the West Indies to finish 2006 with 1,788 Test runs from 11 Tests.

Yousuf's brilliance overshadowed Mohammad Hafeez's (104) patient seven-hour century and the West Indies bowlers struggled on a slow pitch to get only one wicket until tea.

Another milestone

Yousuf also became the sixth Pakistani to score centuries in each innings of a Test match after Hanif Mohammad, Javed Miandad, Wajahtullah Wasti, Yasir Hameed and Inzamam.

When Yousuf reached 43, he overtook compatriot Zaheer Abbas's (583 runs) record of most runs by a Pakistani in a three-Test series. — AP

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