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KARACHI, Pakistan : Australia opener Usman Khawaja smashed his second 50 of the series, but the tourists lost two quick wickets to be 100 for two at lunch on the opening day of the second test against Pakistan on Saturday.
KARACHI, Pakistan (Reuters) - Australia captain Pat Cummins won the toss and elected to bat in the second test against Pakistan at Karachi's National Stadium on Saturday.
KARACHI, Pakistan : Australia captain Pat Cummins won the toss and elected to bat in the second test against Pakistan at Karachi's National Stadium on Saturday.
Pat Cummins knows the task gets significantly tougher for his team in the second Test against Pakistan on Saturday. Australia's first Test in Pakistan in 24 years turned out to be a run-feast in Rawalpindi where 1,187 runs were scored and only 14 wickets fell, earning a "below average" rating from the match referee. After five dull days of bat dominating ball, things are likely to spice up on a dry track at Karachi's National Stadium where spin and reverse swing should ensure runs are not taken for granted. Australia have responded by harnessing debutant Mitchell Swepson with Nathan Lyon in a two-man spin attack, sacrificing the pace of Josh Hazlewood and endorsing Mitchell Starc's reverse swing skills. "The wicket here looks a little bit drier. Historically, it's bit friendlier for the spinners," Cummins told a news conference on Friday.
KARACHI, Pakistan : Beginning a tour of the sub-continent with a draw is a result perfectly acceptable to most visiting captains but Australia skipper Pat Cummins knows the task gets significantly tougher for his team in the second test against Pakistan on Saturday.
Leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson will make his long-awaited Test debut for Australia as the tourists opted for two spinners for the second Test against Pakistan starting on Saturday. After a dreary draw on a flat Rawalpindi pitch in the first Test there is hope that Karachi will live up to its reputation of producing a result through spinners. The 28-year-old Swepson will become the first specialist leg-spinner to play a Test for Australia since Bryce McGain against South Africa in 2009. His inclusion is poignant because it comes a week after legendary Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne died of a suspected heart attack in Thailand.
The first Test between Pakistan and Australia in Rawalpindi ended in a draw and it didn't seem to please Shahid Afridi. The match saw batters enjoying a dream run in the middle with the pitch offering minimum or negligible assistance to the fast bowlers. Afridi seemed quite miffed by not only the pitch, but also the team combination the home side went with. Speaking to Samaa TV, Afridi said: "They didn't think about Australia, the bottom-line was 'we shouldn't lose'. But in the next two Tests in Lahore and Karachi, they have to make good pitches. Results have to come on those pitches. You have to take advantage of your home series, or else when you go to Australia, you're going to struggle."
Pakistan skipper Babar Azam praised batter Imam-ul-Haq for his performance in the first Test against Australia, here in Rawalpindi on Tuesday. Pakistan openers Imam-ul-Haq and Abdullah Shafique scored unbeaten centuries as Pakistan scored 252 without losing any wicket on the fifth and final day of the first Test match being played here at the Pindi Cricket Stadium.