AUS vs PAK: Australia won the one-off T20I against Pakistan by three wickets at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Tuesday, thanks to Nathan Ellis’ four-fer and Aaron Finch’s half-century. Australia won the chase by 163 runs with five balls to spare, capping off their first-ever three-format tour of Pakistan on a positive note.
AUS vs PAK: What was Aaron Finch’s role?
He kept one end up, ensuring that Australia maintained control of the chase. He stitched two quick-fire stands for the first two wickets with Travis Head and Josh Inglis, laying the foundation for Australia’s run chase. As the visitors plundered 84 runs in 8.3 overs, losing both aggressive hitters, Head and Inglis were on the attack.
Finch went on to score a 45-ball 55 – his 16th T20I fifty before becoming the sixth batsman to fall, only five runs short of the target in the 19th over.
AUS vs PAK: How did the war get so close?
Pakistan continued to take wickets on a regular basis. Usman Qadir had Inglis caught behind in the ninth over and then had Marnus Labuschagne stumped by Mohammad Rizwan’s fine work in the next over.
Finch, on the other hand, maintained revitalizing Australia’s chase and pieced together a couple of more useful partnerships with Marcus Stoinis and Ben McDermott. While Finch was soaking up deliveries, Stoinis smashed five boundaries in his brief nine-ball stay to boost Australia’s scoring rate.
Pakistan, on the other hand, was dealt two blows each time. Stoinis’ dismissal was quickly followed by Cameron Green’s, and Finch’s by Sean Abbott’s, all for a duck. McDermott, on the other hand, eventually led the squad over the finish line.
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AUS vs PAK: Who set the base for Pakistan?
It was Babar Azam who set the tone for Pakistan’s innings.
Pakistan’s captain hit his 25th T20I half-century, laying the foundation for the team’s solid start after being put in to bat. Babar put together another powerful opening stand with Mohammad Rizwan, this time scoring 67 runs in 7.4 overs. Before Babar broke loose in the fourth over, creaming Nathan Ellis for three consecutive boundaries, the partnership had taken a cautious approach.
Pakistan’s best total in the first six overs of a T20I versus Australia was 56 runs in the powerplay.
AUS vs PAK: Australia’s plan of fighting back
In his first over, Cameron Green struck twice in two balls. Fakhar Zaman failed to clear the in-field and was caught at mid-on in his attempt to attack the bowler off the opening ball, while the medium pacer had Rizwan playing early to slow delivery and being knocked over.
AUS vs PAK: What occurred to Pakistan after Babar’s fall?
The Pakistan skipper continued to play methodically, taking advantage of scoring opportunities when they presented themselves, but there was no real effort to put Australia on the back foot. He was eventually drawn by Adam Zampa in the 16th over, and his effort to hit him over the offside field was intercepted by the deep extra cover fielder.
What happened after he was knocked down?
Nathan Ellis was everywhere in Pakistan’s middle and lower classes. Asif Ali, Khushdil Shah, and Shaheen Afridi were all dismissed by the pacer, the latter two off successive deliveries. Pakistan, on the other hand, continued to score quickly to reach 162.
AUS vs PAK: Brief Scores
Brief Scores: Pakistan 162/8 in 20 overs (Babar Azam 66, Khushdil Shah 24; Nathan Ellis 4-28, Chris Green 2-16) lost to Australia 163/7 in 19.1 overs (Aaron Finch 55, Travis Head 26; Shaheen Afridi 2-21, Mohammad Wasim Jr 2-30) by 3 wickets
