Pakistan’s batting unit crumbles against Australia in first ODI
Pakistani batters on Monday struggled against a ruthless Australian bowling attack with half of the side sent back to the pavilion in less than 30 overs.
Invited to bat first by the hosts in the series opener, underway at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), the Green Shirts’ kept losing wickets at regular intervals with the score currently standing at 151-7.
Debutant opener Saim Ayub (1) was the first one to bite the dust as he was bowled by Mitchell Starc in the third over. His opening partner Abdullah Shafique also fell victim to Starc after playing a scratchy 12-run knock.
Babar Azam, who made his comeback to the national side’s playing XI after being rested in the remaining two Test of the three-match series against England, fell to Adam Zampa at 37.
Kamran Ghulam and Salman Ali Agha also failed to hold their ground and were dismissed after making meagre contributions of five and 12 runs, respectively.
Though skipper Mohammad Rizwan dug in, he too, failed to go big and got out after scoring 44 runs.
With Shaheen Shah Afridi dismissed at 24, Irfan Khan (12*) and Naseem Shah (3*) are currently on the crease.
It is worth mentioning that Pakistan are playing their first ODI since their 93-run loss against England in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023.
The national side had a dismal run at the mega event and failed to qualify for the semi-final.
Australia, on the contrary, are fresh from their 3-2 away series victory over England.
Both countries have come face to face 108 times in ODIs with the five-time World Cup winners boasting a dominant record with 70 victories, compared to the Green Shirts’ 34.
The Kangaroos have an equally impressive record at home in ODIs as they won 37 out of 56 fixtures, while Pakistan secured 17 victories.
For Pakistan, Shaheen Shah Afridi is leading a four-strong fast-bowling attack with Irfan Khan making his ODI debut in the middle order for the national side.
Men in Green’s Test coach Jason Gillespie, the Australian former international, is in charge of the visitors for the series and three subsequent T20Is following Gary Kirsten’s resignation as the Green Shirts’ white-ball coach.
With Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head on paternity leave, world champions Australia have a new-look opening partnership in Jake Fraser-McGurk and Matt Short.
Veteran Josh Hazlewood was rested with Sean Abbott joining Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc in the hosts’ pace attack on an overcast day.
Playing XIs
Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (c), Salman Ali Agha (vc), Abdullah Shafique, Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain.
Australia: Matt Short, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Steve Smith, Josh Inglis (wk), Marnus Labuschagne, Aaron Hardie, Glenn Maxwell, Sean Abbott, Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa.
