PSL 2022 was one of the special and unique editions of PSL. That season, PSL became the only franchise league in which every side has won the PSL title. Lahore Qalandars become the 6th champion side in the PSL by lifting the PSL 2022 trophy. Many batters make crucial contributions to their sides’ chances of winning the title. And these batters became a vital part of the Pakistan cricket side after their brilliant performance in the PSL 2022. Let’s check out the Top Scorer in PSL 2022: Who Dominated the Runs Chart?
The Final Leaderboard: Who Was the Top Scorer in PSL 2022?
PSL 2022 Batting Chart: Top 10 Run Scorers
| Rank | Player | Team | Matches | Innings | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | 50/100 |
| 1 | Fakhar Zaman | Lahore Qalandars | 13 | 13 | 588 | 45.23 | 152.73 | 7/1 |
| 2 | Mohammad Rizwan | Multan Sultans | 12 | 12 | 546 | 68.25 | 126.68 | 7/0 |
| 3 | Shan Masood | Multan Sultans | 12 | 12 | 478 | 39.83 | 138.15 | 4/0 |
| 4 | Shoaib Malik | Peshawar Zalmi | 11 | 11 | 401 | 44.55 | 137.33 | 3/0 |
| 5 | Alex Hales | Islamabad United | 9 | 9 | 355 | 44.37 | 147.30 | 3/0 |
| 6 | BabarAzam | Karachi Kings | 10 | 10 | 343 | 38.11 | 118.12 | 2/0 |
| 7 | MohammadHafeez | LahoreQalandars | 13 | 13 | 323 | 29.36 | 128.68 | 1/0 |
| 8 | JasonRoy | QuettaGladiators | 6 | 6 | 303 | 50.50 | 170.22 | 1/2 |
| 9 | Kamran Ghulam | Lahore Qalandars | 13 | 13 | 299 | 24.92 | 117.25 | 1/0 |
| 10 | AzamKhan | IslamabadUnited | 12 | 11 | 296 | 29.60 | 141.62 | 2/0 |
Fakhar Zaman was the highest run scorer in PSL 2022. He scored 588 runs for Lahore Qalandars in PSL 2022 to take Lahore Qalandars to its first-ever PSL title. His contributions were valuable because the Lahore Qalandars were the only team left with no PSL title. His crucial contributions in that particular season made him a key player for the Lahore Qalandars in the batting department.
Muhammad Rizwan was the 2nd highest run scorer in PSL 2022. He was the captain of Multan Sultans. Multan Sultans came as defending champions after winning PSL 2021 under the captaincy of Muhammad Rizwan. He scored 546 runs for Multan Sultans in PSL 2022 to take his side to the 2nd PSL final. Former Multan Sultan captain Shan Masood was the third-highest run scorer in PSL 2022. He scored crucial runs for Multan Sultans at a decent pace to take his side to the 2nd PSL final.
Experienced Shoaib Malik was the fourth-highest run scorer in PSL 2022. He was crucial for Peshawar Zalmi to take it to Eliminator I. First on this list, Alex Hales, scored 355 to become the fifth-highest run scorer in PSL 2022. Former captain of the Pakistan cricket team and star batter, Babar Azam, scored 343 runs in PSL 2022. He witnessed his worst season of PSL so far, both with the bat and as captain. Babar Azam took the captaincy of Karachi Kings in PSL 2022, and his side won only one game in that season.
Experienced Muhammad Hafeez stood as the 7th-highest run scorer in PSL 2022. He scored 323 runs in PSL 2022 and helped Lahore win its first PSL title. Jason Roy played an important and effective innings for Quetta Gladiators in PSL 2022. With one hundred and two fifties, Jason Roy scored 303 runs for Quetta Gladiators in PSL 2022 in just six games. Kamaran Ghulam scored 299 runs in PSL 2022 for Lahore Qalandars. His crucial contributions in the middle phase of innings made him crucial for PSL 2022. Azam Khan followed him to become the 10th-highest run scorer in PSL 2022. He scored 296 runs for Islamabad United in PSL 2022 and helped Islamabad United reach Eliminator II.
The Golden Bat Winner: Fakhar Zaman’s Record-Breaking Run
PSL 2022 was the golden year for Lahore Qalandars. It was the years when Lahore Qalandars lifted their first-ever PSL title. After struggling in 6 editions of PSL, it was finally the season where Lahore dominated in every department. In the batting department, Fakhar Zaman showed extraordinary performances with the bat and scored 588 runs. His performances at the start of the tournament were impactful. He scored 76 runs against Multan Sultans in the first game of Lahore Qalandars in PSL 2022. Anyhow, Lahore lost that game, but Fakhar showed that he will be very important with the bat for Lahore Qalandars.
In the next game against Karachi Kings, Fakhar Zaman made a massive impact with his bat. He scored 106* runs for Lahore Qalandars in their 2nd game of PSL 2022. He helped his side win the game easily and contributed to Qalandars’ first two points in PSL 2022. In the third game against Peshawar Zalmi, Fakhar Zaman again showed an impactful performance with the bat. He scored 66 off 38 balls against Peshawar Zalmi with the bat, helping Lahore Qalandars win the 2nd game of PSL 2022. With two fifties and 1 century, Fakhar Zaman closed the first week of PSL 2022 with impactful performances.
In the second week, Fakhar Zaman continued the momentum from the first 1st week. He scored important runs for his side, including two fifties against Multan Sultans and Quetta Gladiators. These performances helped the Lahore Qalandars win five out of their first six games. Fakhar Zaman ended the group stage with brilliant performances for Lahore Qalandars. Due to his impactful performances, Lahore Qalandars finished second on the points table after winning six out of ten games. In the Qualifiers game against Multan Sultans, Fakhar Zaman scored 63 runs, but the Qalandars failed to win the game.
In the Qualifier II game against Islamabad United, Fakhar Zaman scored only one run. But due to the collective performance of the side, Lahore Qalandars won that game by six runs. In the final game, Fakhar Zaman failed to score big runs for Lahore Qalandars. He got out on three runs in the final game against Multan Sultans.
Contenders Who Pushed the Limits
Fakhar Zaman showed brilliant performances in PSL 2022 from the start of the tournament. That start gave him the momentum to score more runs in PSL 2022. It scored a century in the 2nd game against arch-rival Karachi Kings, which boosted his confidence to an extensive level. That innings really was a stepping stone for Fakhar Zaman’s extraordinary performances in PSL 2022.
However, he faced competition for the top position. In PSL 2022, Zaman gave a strong statement with four fifties in the first four games. Muhammad Rizwan was right behind him to overtake him, but Fakhar Zaman kept scoring runs. Shan Masood was also in the race to become the highest run scorer in PSL 2022.
But after a few games, he fell far behind in the race for the highest run scorer. But Fakhar Zaman continued his pace of scoring runs at a fast rate in PSL 2022. Another batter that seemed to be on this list was Babar Azam. PSL 2022 proved to be the worst PSL season for Babar Azam. He scored 323 runs in 10 games. However, he took on the responsibility of leading the side for the first time in the PSL.
Therefore, coupled with the team’s performances, Babar Azam’s individual performance saw a slight decline. He finished PSL 2022 as the 6th-highest run scorer. And he was the highest runs scorer for Karachi Kings in PSL 2022. But leaving these batters far behind, Fakhar Zaman became the highest run scorer in PSL 2022. He scored 588 with a brilliant strike rate and average also. In knock-out games, his performances were not that impressive. He scored below 10 runs in the last two games of PSL 2022. However, he made massive contributions to the Lahore Qalandars in the group stage of PSL 2022, which built confidence within the side to lift the first PSL title.
Behind the Numbers — Analyzing Fakhar Zaman’s Stellar Season
Innings-by-Innings Breakdown
Fakhar Zaman began the PSL season with three fifties and one century in the first four games for Lahore Qalandars. Therefore, the Lahore Qalandars won their first three out of four games in PSL 2022. Fakhar Zaman continued his impressive performances with the bat in PSL 2022. Therefore, the Lahore Qalandars finished in the top 2 of the points table in PSL 2022. Therefore, Lahore Qalandars finished in top-2 for the very first time in the history of PSL. His crucial innings were instrumental for the Lahore Qalandars at a critical time of the season.
He scored an important century against arch-rivals Karachi Kings. These performances were just phenomenal. Here is the scorecard of Fakhar Zaman in every innings of PSL 2022.
| Match No. / Stage | Opponent | Venue / Date* | Fakhar Zaman’s Score | Dismissal / Notes |
| 3rd Match | Multan Sultans | Karachi | 76 (35) | c Imran Khan b Ihsanullah |
| 6th Match | Karachi Kings | Karachi | 106 (60) | c Imad Wasim b Umaid Asif |
| 9th Match | Peshawar Zalmi | Karachi | 66(38) | c Ben Cuttin b Hussain Talat |
| 17th Match | Multan Sultans | Lahore | 60 (37) | c Shahnawaz Dahani b Imran Tahir |
| 20th Match | Quetta Gladiators | Lahore | 53(42) | c Iftikhar Ahmed b Noor Ahmed |
| 26th Match | Karachi Kings | Lahore | 1 (5) | c Chris Jordan b Mir Hamza |
| 27th Match | Islamabad United | Lahore | 51(41) | c Faheem Ashraf b Zahir Khan |
| 30th Match | Peshawar Zalmi | Lahore | 0 (1) | c Kamran Akmal b Shoaib Malik |
| 31th Match | Multan Sultans | Lahore | 63(45) | Lbw David Willey |
| 33th Match | IslamabadUnited | Lahore | 1(3) | c Waqas Maqsood b Liam Dawson |
| Final | Multan Sultans | Lahore | 3(6) | c Shahnawaz Dahani b Asif Afridi |
Fakhar Zaman was an important batter for Lahore Qalandars to achieve the best results in the PSL 2022 group stage. Due to his brilliant performances in PSL 2022, Fakhar Zaman scored most of his runs in the first half of PSL 2022. Therefore, the Lahore Qalandars were able to win their first four out of five games in PSL 2022. Fakhar Zaman has always been a crucial player for Lahore Qalandars since joining. Lahore Qalandars showed full confidence and belief in Fakhar Zaman. Despite the Lahore Qalandars’ poor performances in the first six seasons, the franchise retained Fakhar Zaman in their side.
Therefore, Fakhar Zaman gave a massive reply to this confidence and scored 588 runs to help Lahore Qalandars win their first PSL title. Fakhar Zaman is currently the third-highest run scorer in the PSL. This shows that Fakhar Zaman is one of the key batters for Lahore Qalandars. He is the oldest player for Lahore Qalandars since his joining.
Fakhar Zaman joined Lahore Qalandars in PSL 2017. Since then, Lahore Qalandars have never dropped Fakhar Zaman. Therefore, Fakhar Zaman has become a premium batter for Lahore Qalandars. These statistics and records indicate that his performances are crucial for Lahore to win its first PSL title. Lahore Qalandars have won three titles, most recently the PSL 2025 title. And in these three triumphs, Fakhar Zaman was a crucial member in taking his side to that level. Anyway, there were some challenging phases, especially in the initial phase. However, Lahore Qalandars and Fakhar Zaman worked exceptionally well together, ultimately yielding fruitful results.
Dominance Across Venues
Lahore Qalandars started their PSL 2022 campaign against Multan Sultan at the National Cricket Stadium in Karachi. In the first three games of the Lahore Qalandars, Fakhar Zaman has shown excellent performances. The first three games of Lahore Qalandars were held in Karachi. Fakhar Zaman showed impressive performances with two fifties and one century while playing in Karachi.
The century came against the home side, Karachi Kings. Unfortunately, PSL 2022 games are held in two venues. Therefore, Karachi and Lahore hosted all the games of PSL 2022. Multan and Rawalpindi did not get a single game for PSL 2022. However, Fakhar Zaman made the most of this method, scoring massive runs for his side in PSL 2022. Fakhar Zaman started his season well at the National Cricket Stadium, Karachi. And ended PSL 2022 with not the best performance with the bat, but lifting the title with Lahore Qalandars.
| Venue | Opponents Faced | Total Runs |
| Karachi | Multan Sultans, Karachi Kings, Peshawar Zalmi | 248 |
| Lahore | Multan Sultans, Quetta Gladiators, Karachi Kings, Islamabad United, Peshawar Zalmi, Multan Sultans, Islamabad United, Multan Sultans | 232 |
As PSL 2022 was played on just two venues. Therefore, Lahore Qalandars only played three games in the National Cricket Stadium, Karachi. All the other games of Lahore Qalandars were held in Qadaffi Stadium Lahore. Gaddafi Stadium is also the home ground of Lahore Qalandars. It was also the best opportunity for Fakahr Zaman to score the most runs in front of his home ground. Fakhar showed impressive performances in Gaddafi Stadium to help Lahore Qalandars win the first-ever PSL title.
Due to the post-COVID season, all PSL games were held in just two stadiums. Fakhar Zaman got the best benefits of that system and became the highest run scorer in PSL 2022.
Powerplay King to Finisher? Batting Style Evolution
Fakhar Zaman is one of the best strike-hitters playing in the Pakistan cricket team right now. He has demonstrated the ability to score free runs in power plays. If it gets set for 15 overs of the game, then he will be the most lethal player for the opponent in PSL. His strike rate is even higher in death rather than power play. He started PSL 2022 with an innings of 76, achieving a strike rate of more than 200.
Fakhar Zaman mostly plays in the starting phase of the innings. Therefore, it became easy for him to clear the boundary due to field restrictions. So, in power play, he became a very lethal player in T20 cricket. However, one thing that is concerning is that he does not convert this form to the international team form. Therefore, after PSL 2022, he was the obvious choice to enter the ICC T20World Cup 2022 squad. He was selected for that tournament, but did not play in the entire tournament, including the final game. So, he needs to carry the form forward to get crucial runs for the Pakistan side in international games.
His crucial runs are very important for Pakistan, as if he stands alone on the crease, then he can win the game from any situation. And he did that against New Zealand in the Cricket World Cup 2023. He helped Pakistan chase down the target of more than 400 in that game. But one area where he should focus is on building consistency in his batting. He plays one crucial knock after 10 games for Pakistan. But his 30 or 40 are crucial for his side in the T20 game. But he needs to work on his consistency to sustain stability in his batting. In the recent Asia Cup, he lacked consistency, which put pressure on his batting. Therefore, he did not score many runs for Pakistan, and his strike rate was also under 130.
Top Scorer, Bigger Future? Impact on National Selection
PSL 2022 Form and T20 World Cup Implications
Fakhar Zaman can be a valuable addition to the T20 World Cup 2026, as Pakistan needs an experienced batter to handle the tough conditions of Sri Lanka. However, one area where Fakhar needs to improve is his consistency and ability to adapt to changing conditions. Fakhar Zaman has shown massive flaws in his batting in recent times, which have created problems for the Pakistan cricket team. That is why the Pakistan cricket team lost important games.
Just like in PSL, Fakhar Zaman looks more confident and courageous to score freely everywhere he wants. He needs to play with that confidence to become a more consistent and run-scoring player for Pakistan. For the T20 World Cup 2026, Pakistan needs a stable yet powerful hitter in their lineup. Therefore, Fakhar Zaman can be the best option for Pakistan to win important games.
One thing is very important, that the Sri Lankan conditions are very tough for batters. It is very crucial to adjust to conditions and play with skills and temperament. However, Fakhar Zaman’s style is to maintain a scoring rate at the right pace. It requires regular hitting, which is why Fakhar Zaman must manage both tasks simultaneously. But he is experienced; after dropping Babar and Rizwan, Fakhar is the most senior player in Pakistan’s T20 side. Therefore, a huge responsibility will be on the shoulders of Fakhar Zaman to get better results for Pakistan in the T20 World Cup 2026.
Comparison with Babar Azam and Rizwan
Looking at the records and stats, Fakhar Zaman stands close with the most runs records with Babar Azam and Muhammad Rizwan. But looking at the style and skills, Fakhar Zaman is a totally different player from these two players. Fakhar Zaman mostly focuses on power-hitting rather than technique or strike rotations. That helps him score runs more quickly. His role is to score runs at a fast pace.
But on the other hand, Babar Azam and Rizwan’s responsibility is to stabilize the innings and manage the scoring rate. They mostly rely on strike rotation and get odd boundaries on loose balls. However, these three players, who play in the top order, face tough competition to become the highest run scorer in the PSL. However, in Comparison, there is a huge difference in terms of playing style and technique among these three players.
Quick Hits — Stats, Records, and Noteworthy Mentions
Fastest Fifties and Hundreds in PSL 2022
Fakhar Zaman scored runs in PSL 2022 with an excellent strike rate. But in terms of scoring fifties, he cannot score fifties at a high pace. Like Paul Stirling and Tim David, they shared the record for the fastest fifties in PSL 2022; both players scored fifties in 18 balls against Peshawar Zalmi. But Fakhar Zaman maintained a strike rate of more than 140 in the whole tournament. Therefore, it became easier for him to sustain the pace of scoring runs in every game at a good strike rate.
Most Consistent vs Most Aggressive Batters
Like Fakhar Zaman, many are among the highest run scorers, boasting the best average and strike rate in PSL 2022. Like Jason Roy, who scored with a strike rate of more than 150, and he scored 300+ runs in just six games for Quetta Gladiators, including three fifties and one century. These types of players have a significant impact on their sides and give them a chance to win these games.
Surprises and Breakout Stars
The list of Top run scorers in PSL was mostly filled with experienced players. However, some players stood out in PSL 2022. Kamran Ghulam scored 299 runs in the PSL 2022. He was a great addition to the Lahore Qalandars in PSL 2022, helping to stabilize the innings. Azam Khan scored 296 runs in PSL 2022. His important contributions in the middle overs took Islamabad United to Eliminator II. Both players also scored crucial runs for the Pakistan cricket team after showing great performance with the bat in PSL 2022.