Pakistan's Shoaib inspired by wife

Pakistan batsman Shoaib Malik said his sparkling double hundred against England was inspired by seeing his Indian wife Sania Mirza sweep to a series of tennis titles in 2015.

Malik hit a career-best 245 to cap a remarkable return to Test cricket after five years on the sidelines, four days after Mirza clinched the China Open in Beijing alongside Martina Hingis.

Since returning to the limited overs squad in May, Malik has been averaging 100 in one-day internationals, rousing performances which earned him a Test recall.

Now he is happily competing for bragging rights with his wife who this year has collected grand slam doubles titles with Hingis at Wimbledon and the US Open.

She has also won tour crowns at Indian Wells, Miami, Charleston, Guangzhou, Wuhan and Beijing.

"A double hundred does not come every day," Malik told AFP.

"Naturally when Sania wins in tennis, it motivates me a lot and inspires me to do well in cricket."

Image Id: ~/media/5DDAA152F2C44A72B1CAD2FCE251DAE6

Mirza and Malik were married in 2010 // Getty Images

From 1-5, Malik lifted Pakistan to 8-523 in their first innings on Wednesday, adding 168 for the second wicket with Mohammad Hafeez (98) and 248 for the fifth with Asad Shafiq (107).

Malik's 647-minute vigil ended only after he suffered cramps. He was then on a drip after the match due to dehydration.

Malik's last Test was against England, a few months after his high-profile 2010 marriage to Mirza in the Indian city of Hyderabad Deccan.

But Malik's career nosedived and he not only lost his place in the Test team but did not get regular chances in limited over matches.

The inspiration came from Mirza who rose to world No.1 in doubles in April this year, close to the couple's fifth wedding anniversary.

In May, Malik was included in the one-day side after a gap of two years and he grabbed his chance with both hands, scoring a century against Zimbabwe in Lahore - his first three-figure score for six years.

In July, Sania and Hingis then won their first grand slam title together at Wimbledon.

Malik only returned to the Test side after regular No.3 Azhar Ali was ruled out of the game in Abu Dhabi with a foot injury.