Khawaja's heartbreak in Pakistan return

Usman Khawaja has narrowly missed out on a sentimental century, falling three runs short of a century in his first Test match in Pakistan.

Ending a 12-year wait to play in his country of birth, Khawaja looked set for a famous century at Rawalpindi as he led Australia's fightback on day three.

But instead he was denied by a Pakistan review, after replays showed a ball from finger spinner Nauman Ali had taken his glove before being caught at bat pad.

His downfall came trying to play the reverse sweep, after he'd earlier used the shot particularly well while playing less than an hour's drive from where he was born.

Still, his innings was crucial as Australia went to 2-203 at the point of his dismissal, putting them back in the game after the hosts' 4-476.

The innings also did so much to show how far Khawaja's game has come on slower wickets.

For so long in his career the knock on Khawaja was that he didn't perform on turning decks.

He averaged 30 in Sri Lanka in 2011, 13.75 there in 2016 and was dropped after scores of zero and one in Bangladesh in 2017.

But there were clear signs he had conquered those concerns three years ago when he put on a match-saving 141 against Pakistan in the UAE three-and-a-half years ago.

He also looked at home again on Sunday, and not just for the fact he was back in the city he watched cricket as a toddler and embraced the chance to answer press conference questions in Urdu this week.

He hit 15 boundaries and came out with a positive approach from the start, scoring 40 runs from his first 50 balls.

He used the reverse sweep as a genuine tactic before his dismissal, just as he did in the UAE in 2018.

He was also dropped on both 22 and 62, but showed no signs of concern after both chances as he