Tag: Australia vs Pakistan

Pakistan’s opening batter Abdullah Shafique defended star batter Babar Azam, who got out after only one run in the first innings against Australia on the second day of the Boxing Day Test at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Wednesday.

Babar Azam was castled by Australian skipper Pat Cummins during the second Test after getting him out for 14 in the second innings of the first Test in Perth.

Babar Azam returned with scores of 21 and 14 during the Perth Test indicating his struggling form.

Abdullah Shafique however showed faith in Azam during the post-match press conference, hoping that he will certainly make a comeback.

“Babar Azam is our best batter, and the type of form we see him displaying in the nets indicates he is in a good rhythm,” said Abdullah Shafique.

“We expect to see him scoring runs. Of course, he didn’t perform in this innings, but hopefully, he’ll deliver and turn it around in the coming innings.”

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“Everyone is trying their best and putting in 100% effort. We are prepared on our end, but unfortunately, sometimes you don’t deliver on the day. It happens. Test cricket is not that easy,” he further added.

Shafique also heaps high praise on Pat Cummins, who led the bowling for Australia on the second day with bowling figures of 3-37.

“I think the type of bowler Pat Cummins is, he extracts something out of the pitch every time he bowls.”

Abdullah Shafique top scored for Pakistan during the first innings of the Boxing Day Test with a solid knock of 62 runs Australia made a comeback and reduced Pakistan to 194-6 at the stumps of the second day.

Pakistan will resume their innings on the third day with Mohammad Rizwan (29) and Aamir Jamal (2) on the crease, while Australia is leading by 124 runs.

READ: Australia in command as Pakistan lose six wickets on second day of Boxing Day Test

Right-arm pacer Hasan Ali shared his views on the debate surrounding the decline of pace by his team’s fast bowlers during the second Test against Australia in Melbourne.

A decline in the bowling speed of the Pakistan pacers has been the centre of attention since the commencement of their three-match away series against Australia.

Notably, the Pakistan cricket team struggled during the first Test as their pace bowlers hardly managed to hit speeds around 140 kph, whereas the Australian pace trio of Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc repeatedly clocked above the 140 barrier.

Hasan Ali talked about his and his fellow pacers’ performances on the tour in a press conference in Melbourne.

“I don’t know whose pace has dropped – my focus has never been on pace, and I’ve never bowled at 150 kph,” he said.

“I think it’s better to stick to the area around the top of off stump. I haven’t heard these rumours, and we don’t care about them. Our focus is on the game, and that’s where it should be.”

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Hasan Ali then asserted that Pakistan have an “upper hand” on Australia in the ongoing Test as the touring side did not leak many runs.

“Look, we have an upper hand because we did not leak many runs while playing against a [strong] team like Australia in their conditions,” said Hasan.

“We are not complacent that our job is done. There’s still a long way and our aim is to get them out under 250 and I think that will be a great chance for us to win this game,” he concluded.

It is pertinent to mention that the second Test between Australia and Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground had a captivating start with the visitors restricting the hosts to 187-3 on the rain-affected first day with their spirited performance.

READ: Kagiso Rabada achieves major landmark in Boxing Day Test against India

MELBOURNE: Left-hand opening batter David Warner surpassed former captain Steve Waugh to become the second-highest run-scorer in international cricket for Australia during the first day of the Boxing Day Test against Pakistan at MCG on Tuesday.

David Warner scored 38 runs against Pakistan before he was dismissed by Salman Ali Agha after being dropped earlier by Abdullah Shafique when he was at 2.

Warner has scored 18,502 runs in 460 innings across three formats during his illustrious career since making his debut in 2009 during South Africa’s tour of Australia.

What a career!

Now behind only Ricky Ponting for men's international runs for Australia 🇦🇺 #AUSvPAK pic.twitter.com/obvZcmn0cw

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) December 26, 2023

He surpassed former captain Steve Waugh, who scored 18,496 in 548 innings at an average of 41.65.

The southpaw is now only behind the two-time World Cup-winning captain, Ricky Ponting, who has accumulated 27,368 runs in 667 innings during a career spanning 17 years.

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Notably, Australia scored 187-3 against Pakistan on the first day of the Boxing Day Test at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) with Marnus Labuschagne (44) and Travis Head (9) on the crease.

The second Test was interrupted by rain in the latter half of the day, consequently allowing only 66 overs of play.

Playing XIs

Australia

David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins (capt), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood

Pakistan

Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (capt), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Hasan Ali, Mir Hamza, Aamer Jamal

READ: Usman Khawaja sports shoes with daughters’ names in Boxing Day Test

MELBOURNE: Cricket Australia (CA) on Monday, confirmed that they will stick with the same Playing XI for the second Test against Pakistan, scheduled to commence on December 26.

Captain Pat Cummins’ decision to field the same Playing XI that won the Perth Test by 360 runs meant hometown hero Scott Boland will miss a Boxing Day recall.

Cummins, however, called him unlucky to miss out and remained hopeful that he may, at some point, play a part for the team.

“We’re a huge fan of Scotty, I don’t think that’s a secret,” Cummins told reporters on Boxing Day eve.

“It’s very rare that you’re going to get through seven Test matches with the same (fast) bowling line-up, there’s always niggles or things that pop up.

“He’s ready to go if anything happens, so I’m sure he’ll play a part at some point.

“The message (to Boland) is always ‘we love what you’re bringing, unfortunately you miss out on this one but don’t change … and stay ready’.”

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Pakistan, on the other hand, named a 12-member squad for the second Test with Mohammad Rizwan replacing Sarfaraz Ahmed.

Notably, Sarfaraz Ahmed had a forgetful outing in the Perth Test where he only managed to score seven runs in the first Test and fell victim to left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc in each of the innings.

The 36-year-old also missed a number of chances behind the stumps which drew massive criticism from the fans.

Sarfaraz Ahmed also failed to prove his batting prowess in the two-day practice match against Victoria XI where he managed the scores of 35 and 10.

Mohammad Rizwan, however, strengthened his selection case by scoring a half-century in the practice match.

Besides this, fast-bowling all-rounder Faheem Ashraf also failed to retain his spot in Pakistan’s Playing XI, whereas, pacers Mir Hamza and Hasan Ali were named in the 12-member squad.

Australia Playing XI

David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Mitch Marsh, Alex Carey (wk), Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins (c), Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.

Pakistan squad for second Test

Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi (vc), Hasan Ali, Mir Hamza, Aamir Jamal, Sajid Khan.

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MELBOURNE: The Pakistan Men’s cricket team took the internet by storm with their kind gesture as they presented Christmas gifts to the Australian players on the sidelines of the training session.

The home side was participating in an indoor practice session for the Boxing Day Test when the Pakistan players including captain Shan Masood and coaching staff surprised the rival team with Christmas gifts.

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) shared the wholesome interaction of the two rival teams.

Warm wishes and heartfelt gifts for the Australian players and their families at the MCG indoor nets 🎁✨ pic.twitter.com/u43mJEpBTR

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) December 25, 2023

In the video, the Pakistan team can be seen presenting the Australian players and their families with gifts and sweets.

Australia captain Pat Cummins, who appeared emotionally touched in the shared video also expressed his emotions and termed it a great gesture by the touring side.

“That was just great. Just Merry Christmas gifts and lollipops for the kids. So that was great,” stated Cummins.

“We’ve got a good relationship with the Pakistan side. That tour a couple of years ago was really special as well. So really kind and thoughtful of their group to think of us,” he added.

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Earlier today, the PCB unveiled a 12-member squad for the upcoming Boxing Day Test against Australia with wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan replacing his counterpart Sarfaraz Ahmed.

Wicketkeeper batter Sarfaraz Ahmed had a forgetful outing in the Perth Test where he only managed to score seven runs and fell victim to left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc in each of the innings.

The 36-year-old also missed a number of chances behind the stumps which drew massive criticism from the fans.

Besides this, fast-bowling all-rounder Faheem Ashraf also failed to retain his spot in Pakistan’s Playing XI, whereas, pacers Mir Hamza and Hasan Ali were named in the 12-member squad.

Pakistan squad for second Test

Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi (vc), Hasan Ali, Mir Hamza, Aamir Jamal, Sajid Khan.

READ: Shan Masood explains Sarfaraz Ahmed’s exclusion from Boxing Day Test

MELBOURNE: Test captain Shan Masood opened up on wicketkeeper batter Sarfaraz Ahmed’s exclusion from Pakistan’s 12-member squad for the second Test against Australia.

Sarfaraz, who had a forgetful outing in the Perth Test, was replaced by Mohammad Rizwan on Monday as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) unveiled a 12-member squad for the upcoming second Test.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s newly-appointed Test captain Shan Masood, who categorically coined Sarfaraz Ahmed as his first-choice wicketkeeper ahead of the tour, stated that it would be wrong to say that he was “dropped” and instead termed it as a “little bit of break to recuperate and come back”.

“You saw that with the selection of Khurram Shahzad and Aamer Jamal even though a lot of people felt it was quite risky putting two debutants out there. I think they handled themselves well and we have to give them credit because their first outing in Australia was quite decent.

“The reason to play Sarfaraz was pretty much the same. People go back to stats and Rizwan averages very well in SENA. Firstly, there’s no competition between the two. They’re equally important to the team. Any competition they have is healthy competition.

“We know what Rizwan has done but we gave Sarfaraz the benefit because he averaged 56.50 on his last tour here in 2016. Yes, that’s been quite a while but he’s also played red ball consistently in the Quaid-e-Azam trophy in the last few years.

“Rizwan just came from the World Cup, a lot of white ball cricket. And he also had a gap in red-ball cricket since Sarfaraz took over from him for the New Zealand series.

“Sarfaraz had an outstanding performance there and Rizwan hadn’t played a lot of red-ball cricket. So, there was a method to it. He’s been there, he played red-ball cricket.

“Karachi had a very good season where he was the tournament’s MVP, and that allowed us to get a player like Rizwan into shape. If I had it my way, I’d ideally like both to play but that’s not possible.

“Now we think Rizwan is ready and we can give Saifi that little bit of break to recuperate and come back.”

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Shan Masood also commented on his first defeat as Pakistan’s Test captain when his side suffered a 360-run hammering in the first Test.

“One Test is never a fair assessment,” he said. “You need time. You need a bit more time. You’ve already got a squad that’s been playing Test cricket for a while.

“You have to look at the domestic structure and the players available for red-ball cricket. A lot of things you need before you can sort of force that way of playing.

“You need players to buy in. We want to give players ample opportunity to buy into the way we want to play. There are some things that we’ve said from the outside that we want to play a more attractive brand of Test cricket.

“We did that in Sri Lanka. We got some results as well. The challenge now is to do it against the best teams in world cricket.”

Pakistan squad for second Test

Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi (vc), Hasan Ali, Mir Hamza, Aamir Jamal, Sajid Khan.

READ: Rizwan replaces Sarfaraz in Pakistan’s 12-member squad for second Test

MELBOURNE: Leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed will not be available for Pakistan’s second Test of the three-match series against Australia, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) shared Saturday.

According to the PCB, Abrar Ahmed’s symptoms have significantly improved but the mystery spinner did not fully recover and thus will not be considered for selection for the Boxing Day Test against Australia.

“Abrar Ahmed’s symptoms have significantly improved, and he has started bowling at 50 per cent intensity. Although he has worked really well since his diagnosis in Canberra, he still is not 100 per cent asymptomatic,” stated PCB.

“Considering the nature of the injury and the workload required from a spinner in a Test match, Abrar is not yet ready and will therefore not be available for the second Test.

“He will undergo a preliminary fitness test on 25 December, which will determine his probable return-to-play date.”

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Notably, Abrar Ahmed complained of discomfort in his right leg after bowling eight overs on the third day of a four-day game against Prime Minister’s XI.

Consequently, the 25-year-old spinner was taken off the field and was then sent for an MRI scan.

Sajid Khan was then added to the Pakistan squad for the Australia Tests to provide a cover for the injured mystery spinner.

For the unversed, Abrar was the first Pakistan player to suffer an injury on the Australian shores while Khurram Shahzad and Noman Ali became the latest victims.

Both Khurram and Noman have been ruled out of the entirety of the series while Abrar is still in race to attain complete fitness before the third Test.

Pakistan Test squad

Shan Masood (c), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafiq, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi, Saud Shakeel, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Sajid Khan.

READ: Mohammad Nawaz replaces Noman Ali for Australia Tests

LAHORE: Left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawaz replaced injured Noman Ali for the remainder of the Test series against Australia, sources claimed.

According to the details, the chair of the Pakistan Men’s Selection Committee Wahab Riaz approved Mohammad Nawaz as Noman Ali’s replacement for the series remainder.

Earlier, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced that left-arm spinner Noman was ruled out of the series due to acute appendicitis.

“Noman Ali has been ruled out of the Test series against Australia due to acute appendicitis,” stated PCB.

“Noman Ali complained of sudden and severe abdominal pain yesterday, leading to examinations and scans in emergency that confirmed a diagnosis of acute appendicitis.

“On Surgeon advice; he underwent Laparoscopic Appendectomy today in the morning. Post-surgery he is stable and doing fine. He will be discharged later this afternoon,” PCB concluded.

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Earlier today, the two-day practice match between Pakistan and Victoria XI ended in a draw.

The previous day saw Pakistan declare their first innings at 323-8, helped by half-centuries by Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha.

In reply to Pakistan’s 323, Victoria XI posted 272-4 before declaring.

Pakistan then posted 57-3 in their second innings, when stumps were called.

Following their practice match against Victoria XI, Pakistan will enjoy a rest day before resuming their training at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on December 25.

Meanwhile, the Australia team will report to Melbourne on December 23 and partake in the training session for two days before kicking off the Boxing Day Test on December 26.

Pakistan Test squad

Shan Masood (c), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafiq, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi, Saud Shakeel, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Sajid Khan.

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MELBOURNE: Left-arm spinner Noman Ali has been ruled out of the ongoing three-match Test series against Australia due to acute appendicitis, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said Saturday.

In an official statement, the PCB shared that Noman complained of severe pain in his abdomen and thus was taken for scans that confirmed the diagnosis.

“Noman Ali has been ruled out of the Test series against Australia due to acute appendicitis,” stated PCB.

“Noman Ali complained of sudden and severe abdominal pain yesterday, leading to examinations and scans in emergency that confirmed a diagnosis of acute appendicitis.

“On Surgeon advice; he underwent Laparoscopic Appendectomy today in the morning. Post-surgery he is stable and doing fine. He will be discharged later this afternoon,” PCB concluded.

Earlier today, the two-day practice match between Pakistan and Victoria XI ended in a draw.

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The previous day saw Pakistan declare their first innings at 323-8, helped by half-centuries by Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha.

In reply to Pakistan’s 323, Victoria XI posted 272-4 before declaring.

Pakistan then posted 57-3 in their second innings, when stumps were called.

Following their practice match against Victoria XI, Pakistan will enjoy a rest day before resuming their training at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on December 25.

Meanwhile, the Australia team will report to Melbourne on December 23 and partake in the training session for two days before kicking off the Boxing Day Test on December 26.

Australia Test squad

Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Steve Smith, Mitch Starc, David Warner.

Pakistan Test squad

Shan Masood (c), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafiq, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi, Saud Shakeel, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Sajid Khan.

READ: Pakistan’s two-day practice match against Victoria XI ends in a draw

The two-day practice match between Pakistan and Victoria XI, played at Junction Oval in Melbourne, resulted in a draw.

The previous day saw Pakistan declare their first innings at 323-8, helped by half-centuries by Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha.

In reply to Pakistan’s 323, Victoria XI posted 272-4 before declaring.

Pakistan then posted 57-3 in their second innings, when stumps were called.

Victoria XI started the day trailing by 276 runs, with Marcus Harris and Blake Thomson on the crease. Thomson (30, 46b, 7x4s) was caught off Mir Hamza’s bowling early in the day but Harris went on to register a century (126, 131b, 22x4s, 1×6).

Dylan Brasher was the other contributor with the bat. He scored an unbeaten half-century (79 not out, 105b, 12x4s), which helped the team reduce the first-innings deficit to 51 runs.

Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mir Hamza and Sajid Ali all returned with a wicket each.

Shan Masood and Abdullah Shafique opened the batting for Pakistan in their second innings. Shan fell cheaply to Matthew Fotia. Sarfaraz Ahmed, who replaced Shan on the crease, was dismissed by Sam Elliott for 10.

Abdullah, who hit a 44-ball-39 including seven boundaries, was the top scorer for Pakistan for the day.

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After Abdullah fell to Tyler Pearson in the 12^th over of the innings, Pakistan and Victoria XI captains shook hands and the match was drawn.

Pakistan will play their second Test of the three-match series against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground starting 26 December.

It is pertinent to mention that the upcoming Boxing Day Test against Australia is a must-win fixture for Pakistan to stay alive in the three-match series.

The Shan Masood-led Pakistan succumbed to a 360-run defeat in the first Test in Perth.

Pakistan, who were at the top of the World Test Championship (WTC) points table with a perfect, record, got another blow to their campaign when the International Cricket Council (ICC) penalized them for maintaining a slow over-rate during the Perth Test.

Pakistan were fined 10 per cent of their match fee and docked two ICC WTC points.

The sanction after a hammering defeat, consequently resulted in them slipping to the second spot with a winning rate of 61.11.

Two-time runners-up India benefitted from Pakistan’s demotion and reached the summit with a winning percentage of 66.67.

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