Tag: Lahore Test

LAHORE: Australia beat Pakistan by 115 runs in the third and deciding Test of the recently concluded Benaud-Qadir Trophy at the back of Nathan Lyon’s heroics, who bagged five wickets in the fourth innings, here on Friday.

In the final session of the final day, Pakistan were jolted by a massive blow as the skipper Babar Azam, who was fighting hard with his gritty knock also fell victim to Lyon. He perished in the 84th over after scoring 55 off 104 balls with the help of six boundaries.

Following his dismissal, the batting tail could not do much against the strong Australian bowling attack and the home side, in the end, bowled out for 235; handing the touring side a resounding 115 runs victory.

Earlier, the home side Pakistan experienced a disastrous second session as the side collapsed from 142/2 to 167/5 with the top-scorer Imam-ul-Haq, alongside Fawad Alam, and Mohammad Rizwan making their way back to the pavilion.

Imam remained the top scorer for the home side with 70 runs in 199 deliveries, while Babar followed back with a gritty 55. The rest of the batters, on the other hand, could not manage to score significantly.

In the morning, Pakistan resumed at an overnight score of 73/0, the set pair of Abdullah Shafique and Imam broke as the former walked back to the pavilion without scoring a run on the fifth day.

Abdullah scored 27 off 80 balls with the help of three boundaries and a six before Cameron Green dismissed him in the fourth over of the morning session.

Azhar Ali then arrived at the crease and put on a brief partnership with Imam. The pair could only add 28 runs for the second wicket before the former perished on Nathan Lyon’s delivery. The right-handed batter scored 17 off 47 deliveries.

READ: Sarfaraz Ahmed opts to leave Test squad to join Sindh in Pakistan Cup

LAHORE: Australian pacers Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc wreaked havoc over the Pakistan batting line-up dismissing the home side on 268 to hand their team a massive lead of 123 runs before the openers take the touring side to 11/0 at the stumps on day three of the ongoing third Test.

After bowling out Pakistan on 268, Australian openers Usman Khawaja and David Warner could only bat for three overs. The openers took their side to 11/0 before the umpire dislodged the bails to call off the day.

Khawaja (7*) and Warner (4*) will now resume the proceedings for the touring side on the fourth day of the third Test. The touring side currently has a massive lead of 134 runs.

On the other hand, Pakistan had a forgetful third session as the touring bowlers wreaked havoc over their batting lineup. The home side lost all their remaining seven wickets and could only manage to add 41 runs after the Tea break.

Australian captain Cummins led the way with a five-for, while Starc followed back with four. Nathan Lyon, on the other hand, made one scalp.

Coming out to bat after tea, the home side soon lost their fourth wicket as the left-arm pacer Starc castled Fawad Alam on 13.

Following his departure, the side began to lose wickets at an alarming rate. Babar Azam, who was standing firm at the other end, also became the victim of the collapse as he lost his wicket to Starc after scoring 67.

The home side’s batting tail had no answers to the Australian bowling attack as Nauman Ali, Hasan Ali, and Naseem Shah bagged ducks. Mohammad Rizwan and Sajid Khan, on the other hand, scored one and six respectively.

Following the match-defining collapse, Pakistan bowled out on 268; handing a massive 123-runs lead to the Kangaroos.

The second session of the third day turned out to be an eventful one as the visitors removed both set batters Abdullah and Azhar, while the home side added 68 runs at 2.7 runs per over.

The top-scorer for the home side – Abdullah walked back to the pavilion in the fourth over of the second session as Nathan Lyon removed the former for 81. He faced 228 balls and smashed 11 boundaries.

Later, Azhar also made his way back a few overs before the Tea break as Australian captain Pat Cummins took a screamer off his bowling to remove Azhar for 78. The right-handed batter 208 deliveries and hit eight boundaries including a six.

In the morning session, the set pair of Abdullah and Azhar resumed at an overnight score of 90/1, extending their important partnership by adding a further 69-runs; making sure that the home side do not lose any wicket. Pakistan added 69 runs at a decent rate of 2.4.

READ: Balochistan crush Northern by seven runs to top Pakistan Cup points table

LAHORE: Australian all-rounder Cameron Green opened up about missing on a chance to score his maiden Test century, said nobody wants to miss out on the milestone.

Green while talking to the post-day virtual press conference expressed his disappointment in missing out on an opportunity to score his maiden ton.

“Nobody wants to be out close to hundred. Unfortunately, I couldn’t play more,” he said.

“A century has its own significance in Test cricket. I would have always remembered this feat if I ended up getting a ton,” he added.

The right-handed batter also praised Naseem Shah for his brilliant performance with the ball, while termed his dismissal ‘unfortunate’.

“Naseem bowled really well, we were looking for a long partnership, it is unfortunate for me to get out,” he said.

“Naseem made good use of the old ball. Hopefully, we too can get the ball to reverse swing when the ball gets old,” he added.

The Australian all-rounder further shared about his experience of batting on a sub-continent pitch, said he is learning to play according to the pitch condition here.

“I am still learning to play according to the conditions of the subcontinent pitches. We have to stay long at the crease here and the ball gets a low bounce,” he concluded.

READ: ‘Naseem Shah is the future of Pakistan’ Shaheen Shah Afridi

LAHORE: Pakistan’s opening batter Abdullah Shafique and top-order batter Azhar Ali stood firm and took the home side to 90/1 at the conclusion of the second day of the third Test, here on Tuesday.

In response to Australia’s 391, the home side managed to score 90/1 at the stumps on the second day. Opener Abdullah and Azhar anchored the innings with an unbeaten 70-runs partnership and will now resume the proceedings on the third day for Pakistan.

Abdullah is just five away from his half-century, while Azhar has scored an unbeaten 30 off 79 balls.

Earlier, Pakistan were off to a poor start as the home side lost their first wicket in the form of Imam-ul-Haq for a combined score of 20. The left-handed batter managed to score 11 before Pat Cummins trapped him in his legs.

Earlier, Pakistan bowled out Australia for 391, thanks to the four-wicket hauls each from Naseem Shah and Shaheen Shah Afridi.

After a frustrating first session, Pakistan’s pacers fired back at the opposition in the second session; taking five wickets and conceding only 71 runs.

Australia’s set pair of Alex Carey and Cameron Green fell in the quick successions after the Lunch break, while the batting tail had no answers to Pakistan’s bowling attack.

Carey scored an important 67, while Green starred with his 79. The left-handed opener Usman Khawaja, however, remained the top scorer for his side with a brilliant 91.

For Pakistan, Shaheen and Naseem picked four wickets each, while Sajid Khan and Nauman Ali struck out a batter apiece.

At the resumption of day two, Australia, resuming at an overnight score of 232/5, the visitors completely dominated the first session of day two. The pair of Carey and Green added 88 runs into their side’s overnight score at a decent run-rate of 3.14.

READ: Smith, Khawaja’s dismissals put Pakistan in commanding position

LAHORE: Australia’s set pair of Usman Khawaja and Steve Smith fell in the last session of the opening day of the ongoing third Test to put Pakistan in a commanding position, here on Monday.

The last session of the opening day turned out to be an eventful one as the home side picked up three wickets, while the visitors managed to add 87 runs and took their score to 232/5 at the stumps.

Resuming the score at 145/2 after the Lunch, Australia’s set batter Smith could not carry his bat for long as he walked to the pavilion in the third over of the last session. Pakistan’s speedster Naseem Shah bowled a magnificent reverse swing to trap him in legs.

The right-handed batter scored 59 off 169 deliveries with the help of six boundaries. His partner, Khawaja on the other hand, stayed a little longer at the crease but fell short to his 12th Test century by a mere nine runs. Babar Azam took a sharp catch off Sajid Khan’s delivery at slip to dismiss the left-hander.

Soon after Khawja’s exit, the left-handed batter Travis Head also made his way back to the pavilion after he managed to score 26 off 70 balls.

Alex Carey (8*) and Cameron Green (20*) will now resume the proceedings for the touring side at 232/5 on the second day.

For Pakistan, Naseem and Shaheen Shah Afridi bagged two wickets each, while Sajid managed to make one scalp.

In the second session, Australia took control after losing two quick wickets in the third over of the day. The opening batter Khawaja and Smith then anchored the innings with an astonishing 137-runs unbeaten partnership.

The pair scored added a further 75-runs before the Tea break and made sure that the touring side do not lose further wickets.

Earlier, Australia, after opting to bat first, were off to a poor start as Pakistan’s leading pacer Shaheen struck the opener David Warner and the top-ranked Test batter Marnus Labuschagne in his second over.

With Shaheen’s quick strikes, Australia lost their first two wickets for a mere eight runs. The left-hander Khawaja and experienced Smith then anchored the innings with an unbeaten 62-runs partnership and took Australia to 70/2 at the conclusion of the first session.

READ: Zahid Mahmood replaces Mohammad Nawaz for white-ball series