LAHORE: Australia looked set for a big score before Pakistan fought back valiantly in the final session of the first day of the third and final Test in Lahore, with the visitors ending day one on 232/5.
Winning the toss, Australian skipper Pat Cummins had no hesitation in opting to bat first with an unchanged squad. Pakistan made one change drafting in pacer Naseem Shah in place of all-rounder Faheem Ashraf.
The Australians found themselves in trouble early as Shaheen Afridi trapped David Warner with a delivery that moved in as the Australian opener walked back for 7.
In the same over, he would then dismiss Marnus Labuschagne for a duck off a delivery that nipped away from him, inducing the outside edge. After 2.5 overs, Australia found themselves at 8/2, with Usman Khawaja and Steve Smith tasked with withstanding the Pakistan pace assault as tget played with a watchful mindset.
Despite Pakistan’s best efforts, another breakthrough would not come around as Australia headed to lunch at 70/2. Pakistan continued to toil hard on a flat wicket and none of the three pacers or the spin of Sajid Khan and Nauman Ali troubled Khawaja or Smith.
Khawaja’s golden run in the series continued as he brought up his third fifty-plus score. Steve Smith would also follow suit, notching up his milestone. It was a dominant session for the Australians as they added 75 runs without losing a wicket.
The final session would finally bring some joy for Pakistan on the back of some disciplined bowling. The 138-run stand would finally be broken by Naseem Shah as he trapped Steve Smith LBW for 59.
With a hint of reverse swing coming into play, Naseem got the ball to move in sharply as Smith was hit on the pad. The umpire had no hesitation in adjudging him out. Khawaja nudged the ball around and looking well set for another massive score. He was joined by Travis Head, who got a second life as Sajid Khan dropped a return catch.
Sajid would reap the reward for some tight bowling, getting the big scalp of Khawaja. Babar Azam reacted brilliantly and pulled off a stunning catch as Khawaja had to walk back to the pavilion in the nineties for the second time in the series.
Naseem Shah would produce another brilliant delivery, getting the ball to shape in from the fourth stump. Travis Head would be caught flat-footed, prodding at the delivery and edging it straight into the hands of the keeper to walk back for 26.
Cameron Green (20*) and Alex Carey (8*) ensured no more setbacks for the visitors, and they will resume day two in Lahore at 232/5.
It was an emotional day as Gaddafi Stadium last staged a Test after 13 years, since March 2009 when the Sri Lanka cricket team was attacked by terrorists. After that unfortunate incident, Pakistan played 33 Tests offshore until November 2019 when Sri Lanka played in Rawalpindi in December 2019.
