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Pak vs Aus: Pakistan take momentum to Lahore as Australia rue another near-miss

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  • The wicket at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium will be something of an unknown as it hosts its first Test since 2009.
  • “(Batting) five sessions in a Test match against Australia is no joke,” says wicketkeeper Rizwan.
  • Pakistan have now twice foiled Australia’s vaunted attack.

Pakistan and Australia head to the third and final Test in Lahore with the series locked and all to play for but the home side will feel they have the momentum after pulling off a brilliant save in Karachi.

Inspired by a majestic 196 by captain Babar Azam and 104 by Mohammad Rizwan, Pakistan’s 171.4-over stonewall was the longest any team has batted in the fourth innings of a Test, barring England’s epic 654 for five in the ‘Timeless Test’ against South Africa in Durban in 1939.

“(Batting) five sessions in a Test match against a world-class team like Australia is no joke,” said wicketkeeper Rizwan.

“This match is definitely a benchmark for our team to rise above.”

Pakistan have now twice foiled Australia’s vaunted attack, though the lifeless Rawalpindi pitch aided the home side’s cause in the series-opener.

Read more: T20I, ODI matches shifted from Rawalpindi to Lahore, Sheikh Rasheed says

Australia, meanwhile, spoke of disappointment in falling three wickets short of victory but may quietly feel relieved to leave Karachi with the series tied.

Pakistan were motoring toward what would have been a record 506-run chase for victory until spinner Nathan Lyon dismissed Babar and all-rounder Faheem Ashraf in consecutive balls.

Australia’s inability to close out matches from dominant positions on day five has become a problem.

They have now racked up five such failures in their last 19 Tests, having let England off the hook in Sydney during the recent Ashes and India twice in the 2-1 series defeat in the previous home summer.

While Australian media questioned whether skipper Pat Cummins might have enforced the follow-on rather than making his team bat again, the tourists’ sloppy fielding on day five ultimately paved the way for disappointment.

Mitchell Swepson, Australia’s first Test legspinner in more than a decade, may feel particularly aggrieved after finishing with figures of 0-156 from nearly 54 overs’ work in the fourth innings of his debut Test, with four chances going begging off his bowling.

“I thought ‘Swep-o’ bowled fantastically today,” Cummins said.

“I don’t know how he’s ended up with those figures.”

The wicket at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium will be something of an unknown as it hosts its first Test since 2009.

Selecting an attack has been a virtual guessing game for Australia on their first tour of Pakistan in 24 years and Lahore may be no different.

Cummins said they will at least have a full complement of bowlers to choose from, with him and his fellow pacemen sparing themselves a bigger workload in Karachi by routing Pakistan for 148 in their first innings.

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Sajid Khan smashes Saqlain Mushtaq’s 24-year-old Test record in Pakistan vs England.

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In the opening Test match between Pakistan and England at the Multan Cricket Stadium, off-spinner Sajid Khan created history by taking seven wickets, shattering the 24-year-old record set by the late, great Saqlain Mushtaq.

Day three of the second Test saw England eliminated for 291 after seven wickets from Sajid Khan, trailing Pakistan’s first innings by 366 runs.

During the morning session, the 31-year-old off-spinner claimed three of the four wickets that fell, making it his second five-wicket haul of the day. England had resumed at 239-6 in Multan.

Remaining wicket-taker for Pakistan, with statistics of 3-101, was left-arm spinner Noman Ali.

Sajid Khan ended up being the first Pakistani off-spinner to take five or more wickets at home since Saqlain Mushtaq did it in 2000 at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, taking seven wickets for 111 runs in 26.2 overs.

The scoreboard read 239-6 when England had already resumed their batting. At the crease were Jamie Smith (12) and Brydon Carse (2).

But in the morning, Sajid Khan replaced Carse after they could only add nine more runs. After reaching 21, Smith was caught by Noman, and the off-spinner quickly got rid of Matthew Potts (6).

Prior to Sajid finishing the batting, Jack Leach amassed a vital 25-run unbeaten innings. He and Shoaib Bashir (9) added 29 runs for the final wicket.

Noman grabbed three wickets at a cost of 101 runs, while Sajid took figures of 7-111.

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Second Test between Pakistan and England: Pakistan fights to 366/10 on day two

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Pakistan chose to bat in the second Test match between England and Pakistan in Multan, and by the second session on Day 2, they had amassed 358/9.

(123.3 ov) 366/10

Despite having a hip injury, Aamer Jamal made a significant contribution to the score alongside Noman Ali before being dismissed for 37 runs by Brydon Carse.

As Pakistan tries to extend their first innings score, Noman Ali, who is 29, is still undefeated. With three wickets for forty-three runs, Carse has been very effective. Spinner Shoaib Bashir has also taken a wicket.

The early England wicket burst and the solid 49-run stand between Jamal and Noman have kept the match evenly matched.

England’s goal in opening their batting innings will aim to remove the final Pakistani wicket as soon as possible.

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The PCB has issued a show-cause notice to Fakhar Zaman about a post about Babar Azam.

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The newly constituted selection committee on Sunday excluded Babar, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Sarfaraz Ahmed off the roster for the ongoing second and forthcoming third Test against England.

Subsequent to the announcement, Fakhar Zaman utilized his official X (previously Twitter) account to convey his disappointment. He referenced the manner in which India handled Virat Kohli throughout his challenging period from 2020 to 2023.

“It is troubling to receive proposals regarding the dismissal of Babar Azam.” Fakhar stated that India did not bench Virat Kohli during his challenging period from 2020 to 2023, when he recorded averages of 19.33, 28.21, and 26.50, respectively.

The left-handed batsman commended Babar, deeming him the greatest Pakistani batsman in history, while emphasizing the necessity of strategic decisions instead of resorting to panic.

“Sidelining our premier batsman, arguably the finest Pakistan has ever produced, may convey a profoundly negative message to the team.” There remains an opportunity to avert unnecessary alarm; our emphasis should be on protecting our pivotal actors rather than compromising them,” he stated.

Subsequently, the next day, the PCB issued a show-cause notice to Fakhar for violating the Code of Conduct. The cricket board has requested the dynamic batsman to reply to the notification by October 21.

The second Test between Pakistan and England is now in progress in Multan, while the third and final match of the series is scheduled to take place in Rawalpindi starting October 15.

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