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Captain Pat Cummins declared himself delighted at the end of a landmark year for Australian cricket as his 10-wicket haul in the second test win over Pakistan in Melbourne secured his entry into an elite band of bowlers.
It was deja vu all over again for Pakistan batter Babar Azam as Australia pacer Josh Hazlewood sent him packing with a ripper on Day 4 of the ongoing Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday. Hazlewood's inswinging delivery was similar to the one his captain and fellow pacer Pat Cummins bowled to get rid of Babar. After pitching, the ball nipped back sharply to rattle the stumps, with Babar, who was batting brilliantly on 41, pretty late to get into his strides. Babar's dismissal in the second innings was pretty similar to the one in the first innings.
Indian captain Rohit Sharma's vulnerability against Kagiso Rabada continued with his dismissal in the first innings of the opening Test match in Centurion on Tuesday. He was again dismissed by the same bowler on Thursday in India's second innings, that too for a duck. Rohit Sharma has been a prime target for Kagiso Rabada across all formats and has been troubled consistently. The South African paceman has now dismissed Sharma a total of 14 times across formats, which is the highest by any bowler.
Mitchell Marsh hit a counter-attacking 96 in a fighting rescue mission with a dogged Steve Smith Thursday to help Australia build a 241-run lead and regain control of the second Test against Pakistan. The hosts were reeling at 16-4 after dismissing Pakistan for 264 in reply to their first innings 318 in Melbourne. But Marsh and Smith put their heads down to compile what could be a match-saving 153-run partnership. At stumps on day three, the hosts were 187-6 with Smith out for 50, off 176 balls, in the last over of the day, leaving Alex Carey unbeaten on 16.
Pakistan cricket team star Abdullah Shafique was once again criticised heavily after he dropped a sitter at first slip to provide a lifeline to Mitchell Marsh on Day 3 of the second Test match against Australia in Melbourne. It was a straightforward chance but he ended up closing his hands too soon and the ball bounced out much to the disappointment of Pakistan. Shafique had earlier dropped a catch from David Warner in the first innings and former Australia slip fielder Mark Waugh was not impressed.“Like a crocodile jaw trying to take a catch. Get him out of there,” Waugh said on commentary.
The start of play after lunch on Day 3 of the second Test match between Australia and Pakistan in Melbourne was delayed for a bizarre reason. All the players and on-fielders umpires were out in the middle but the play could not start for a few minutes as third umpire Richard Illingworth was stuck in a lift and could not make his way back to his setup. The players were not clear regarding the delay and the on-field umpires informed them about the situation. However, it was resolved in some time as Illingworth took his position and the game was able to start with Pakistan in a dominant position for the time being.
Australia vs Pakistan 2nd Test Day 3 Live: Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon put Australia in the driving seat of the second Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Wednesday to leave Pakistan tottering at 194-6, still 124 runs behind on day two. At stumps, Mohammad Rizwan was on 29 and Aamer Jamal not out two after Cummins took the crucial wickets of Abdullah Shafique (62) and Babar Azam (one), then Agha Salman (five). Lyon chipped in by removing Imam-ul-Haq (10) and Shan Masood (54), while Josh Hazlewood bowled Saud Shakeel for nine as Pakistan's dream of a first Test win in Australia since 1995 faded. (LIVE SCORECARD)
Pakistan's former skipper Babar Azam failed to contribute with the bat one more time as Australia skipper Pat Cummins cleaned him up for a score of just 1 run. Pakistan's top-order did well in tackling Australia's bowling attack, with the likes of Abdullah Shafique and Shan Masood scoring half-centuries. Babar was expected to carry the momentum forward after the duo's dismissal but he could only score one run in 6 balls before Cummins bowled a ripper on the 7th delivery to send him packing.