Greetings to all our readers and what a see-saw battle it was in Karachi between Pakistan and Australia. This was the most awaited series but it was looking a really dead one till that point.
1st test in Rawalpindi where only 14 wickets fell and after that, there was huge criticism on the wicket and after that, the way was going very same in this match also.
Consistent Khawaja
Usman Khawaja has been really consistent since his come back and he missed his well-deserved hundred in the last test by just 3 runs. But this time he didn't it, he started right from there where he left in the last match and scored a big hundred. Test no.1 batter Marnus Labushagne was run out on a duck on a batting paradise but after that Steve Smith and Khawaja built the innings really nicely and put their team back on track. Khawaja scored 160 and Smith once again got out in the 70s in the penultimate over.
Please read also Cricket talk about Aus tour of Pak and Sl tour of Ind
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| Usman Khwaja |
After that Alex Carey also batted brilliantly to strengthen his position in the side and gave some useful runs to his side. He scored 93 runs and missed his maiden hundred by just 7 runs he was bowled by Babar Azam at the end of Day 2. Australia kept Pakistan in the field for 189 overs under the very hot conditions of Karachi and they finished on 556/9.
Pakistan batting collapse
After the fielding of 189 overs that was never easy to bat in those conditions and Pakistan made a mess of the situation. Their feet couldn't move well at all and some poor shot selection was also there to damage further. Australia waited for the ball to get old and it started to reverse at the pace of 140 plus which was never easy to handle. Mitchell Starc was the chief destroyer with the ball in hand he pushed Pakistan way back by getting Azhar and Fawad in consecutive deliveries and after that Cummins and Lyon put their hands up to dent further. Pakistan got all out on just 148 Babar Azam was the top scorer with 36. There were still over 400 runs left but Australia didn't enforce the follow-on and went for the batting again. That was just the torcher not only physically but mentally also. They batted just 22 overs and scored 97 runs for the loss of 2 wickets and set the target of 506 for Pakistan.
It was a really tough task for Pakistan batters against a brutal bowling lineup to survive in over 5 sessions but they have written the history.
Class of Brilliant Babar
Pakistan was 21/2 in the 2nd session of Day 4 then captain Babar Azam arrived at the crease under utmost pressure and the heat also. On the other hand, there was a young but technically really solid Abdullah Shafique. They both built a great partnership and Pakistan didn't lose a wicket for rest of the day. Meanwhile, Babar Azam scored his 6th test hundred after almost 750 days. That was a sheer class and great temperament by Pakistan's captain.
Please read also Cricket Journey and Biography of Babar Azam
Pakistan lost the wicket at the end of the 1st session of Day5 and it was Abdullah Shafique who missed out on his well-fighting hundred by just 4 runs. He fought hard till that point but sometimes you can be nervous about achieving the personal milestones and that was the story about Abdullah also. But Babar was still there and was fighting from the front and Australian bowlers.
But in the last session, there was some drama when Babar got out on 196 and missed his double century by just 4 runs. That was a big heartbreak not only for Babar but for his fans and true cricket lover also because he deserved that but cricket is a really cruel game. But he tumbled the record book many times in that innings he is the only current captain who scored the 100 in all formats of the game and he is the highest scorer as captain in the 4th innings of the test match. Pakistan is just the 2nd side in the history of test cricket which saved a test match after playing 1000 balls.
Reliable Rizwan
After the wicket of Abdullah and Fawad also got out early and then Muhammad Rizwan made his way to the crease and helped his captain. When Babar got out there were 12 overs left in the day and Pakistan was under extreme pressure and they lost 2 more wickets. But reliable Rizwan made sure that the hard work of his captain won't go in vain. He has not only saved a match but scored a hundred also under the tricky situation. When you lost a set batsman in a pressure situation then it is always getting tougher and tougher for the next batters but Muhammad Rizwan hold the nerves and didn't throw it away.
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| Babar Azam |
Pakistan lost the wicket at the end of the 1st session of Day5 and it was Abdullah Shafique who missed out on his well-fighting hundred by just 4 runs. He fought hard till that point but sometimes you can be nervous about achieving the personal milestones and that was the story about Abdullah also. But Babar was still there and was fighting from the front and Australian bowlers.
But in the last session, there was some drama when Babar got out on 196 and missed his double century by just 4 runs. That was a big heartbreak not only for Babar but for his fans and true cricket lover also because he deserved that but cricket is a really cruel game. But he tumbled the record book many times in that innings he is the only current captain who scored the 100 in all formats of the game and he is the highest scorer as captain in the 4th innings of the test match. Pakistan is just the 2nd side in the history of test cricket which saved a test match after playing 1000 balls.
Reliable Rizwan
After the wicket of Abdullah and Fawad also got out early and then Muhammad Rizwan made his way to the crease and helped his captain. When Babar got out there were 12 overs left in the day and Pakistan was under extreme pressure and they lost 2 more wickets. But reliable Rizwan made sure that the hard work of his captain won't go in vain. He has not only saved a match but scored a hundred also under the tricky situation. When you lost a set batsman in a pressure situation then it is always getting tougher and tougher for the next batters but Muhammad Rizwan hold the nerves and didn't throw it away.
Please read also Cricket Journey of Superstar of Cricket Pakistan Muhammad Rizwan
So Pakistan needed that type of effort to save this match but how long it will go like this. There should have been balanced competition between bat and ball which was not the case in 1st 2 matches of the Series and if Pakistan didn't collapse there it could have been another dead rubber on this type of pitch. We can just hope for the better in the next and the last match of the series in Qaddafi Stadium Lahore.
Team India's Domination
India has finished the home season without a defeat and that was a great achievement of their new captain Rohit Sharma. They started against New Zealand and then West Indies and now against Sri Lanka. They dominated them in all departments of the game and they tested their players also there was just one draw against New Zealand in tests but after that, it was a walk in the park for the home side. India always looks formidable in bilateral series but their problems come in ICC tournaments where they struggle a lot. That's why they are testing everything and trying to get the best out of that. Let's talk about the last test match against Sri Lanka.
It was a day-night test match between them and India won the all-important toss and elected to bat 1st. It was never an easy wicket to bat on and Indian batters changed their approach and started to attack. Shreyas Iyer was the leading run-scorer and helped his side to put 250 on the board. You can say that was under par but batting conditions were really tough, especially under the lights with pink against Bumrah and Shami you can only say good luck.
Sri Lanka was just blown away on 109 and Jasprit Bumrah registered his 1st 5fer at home. After that India batted in the same way as 1st innings and got a total of over 300. Shreyas Iyer once again showed his class and Rishabh Pant scored the fastest fifty for India in tests.450 was just a huge total and was almost unchaseable but Sri Lankan captain Dimuth Karunaratne showed some courage and fight but that was not enough. He scored his hundred and Kushal Mendis got a fifty but except for them, nobody was able to stand up. Team India won that comprehensively and finished their home season in some style.
Now they will be heading towards the IPL which is going to start from 26th March so the action will continue and you can get all news about cricket right here at www.cric-talk.com
So Pakistan needed that type of effort to save this match but how long it will go like this. There should have been balanced competition between bat and ball which was not the case in 1st 2 matches of the Series and if Pakistan didn't collapse there it could have been another dead rubber on this type of pitch. We can just hope for the better in the next and the last match of the series in Qaddafi Stadium Lahore.
Team India's Domination
India has finished the home season without a defeat and that was a great achievement of their new captain Rohit Sharma. They started against New Zealand and then West Indies and now against Sri Lanka. They dominated them in all departments of the game and they tested their players also there was just one draw against New Zealand in tests but after that, it was a walk in the park for the home side. India always looks formidable in bilateral series but their problems come in ICC tournaments where they struggle a lot. That's why they are testing everything and trying to get the best out of that. Let's talk about the last test match against Sri Lanka.
It was a day-night test match between them and India won the all-important toss and elected to bat 1st. It was never an easy wicket to bat on and Indian batters changed their approach and started to attack. Shreyas Iyer was the leading run-scorer and helped his side to put 250 on the board. You can say that was under par but batting conditions were really tough, especially under the lights with pink against Bumrah and Shami you can only say good luck.
Sri Lanka was just blown away on 109 and Jasprit Bumrah registered his 1st 5fer at home. After that India batted in the same way as 1st innings and got a total of over 300. Shreyas Iyer once again showed his class and Rishabh Pant scored the fastest fifty for India in tests.450 was just a huge total and was almost unchaseable but Sri Lankan captain Dimuth Karunaratne showed some courage and fight but that was not enough. He scored his hundred and Kushal Mendis got a fifty but except for them, nobody was able to stand up. Team India won that comprehensively and finished their home season in some style.
Now they will be heading towards the IPL which is going to start from 26th March so the action will continue and you can get all news about cricket right here at www.cric-talk.com