Monday’s first ODI will be but a footnote, an extension of an apparently unalterable trend, in the final analysis of Australia’s complete dominance over Pakistan at home. Australia has now defeated Pakistan at home in 27 of the previous 28 games played in all forms, including a triumph at the MCG with 99 balls remaining. However, Haris Rauf bowled the following over, the sixth of his delivery, after Shaheen Shah Afridi had Josh Inglis hole out in the deep to bring in a new man.
However, that would seriously undermine a Pakistani retaliation that was both abrupt and unanticipated. This appeared to be as easy an ODI victory as it could get, with Australia dominating the match from start to finish and racing to 139 for 3 in the 20th over after chasing a disappointing 204.
On a surface that remained true throughout, Rauf still had the speed to pull additional bounce, and Marnus Labuschagne’s leading edge carried all the way to third man. The next ball kissed the edge on its quick path through to Mohammad Rizwan after drawing Glenn Maxwell into a cautious poke first up. In a nation where they have had little success, Pakistan was back and appeared to be the favorite after Australia had lost three wickets for 0 runs in five balls.
After the game, Rauf remarked, “Whether in the field or with the ball, we were all trying our best.” “It was my intention to bowl short. We took a couple wickets in this manner, and we were successful.
Australia’s hold on Pakistan ultimately proved difficult to break. As he has so frequently done in the past, Pat Cummins maintained his composure and made sure he was there to smash the winning runs and secure a two-wicket victory even if the visitors did take another couple of wickets and expose the tail.
Rauf lamented Pakistan’s carelessness. Australia had only given up four extras, whereas they had given up twenty-one. Naseem Shah bowled another five, and Rauf himself blasted a wide so deep down leg that it sped away four and an additional four at such a fast velocity. The pressure instantly returned to the visitors as Mohammad Hasnain claimed Australia’s seventh wicket, sending two wides far over the batter’s head in the same over.
If you tighten up in the field as well, you may cover the batsmen who are 20–30 runs short if you’re a strong bowling team. We all made a concerted effort to protect this. Even though we didn’t win the game, we didn’t let that stop us from giving it our all.
A recurring theme in Pakistan lately has been coming up painfully short at the MCG. India won the T20 World Cup 2022 by a narrow margin after Rauf’s penultimate over to Virat Kohli changed the course of a match that Pakistan had previously controlled. In a thrilling T20 World Cup final three weeks later, Pakistan’s momentum was lost due to Shaheen’s injury.
“On this land, we have memories that we can recall. We lost the World Cup final and a few pretty close games versus India here,” Rauf said. “Despite our previous faults, we make an effort to live in the present. We are savoring the now and have no control over the future either.
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