Sports

Pak vs Aus: Usman Khawaja hundred propels Australia to 251-3 in Karachi

Published

3 years ago

Farwa

Usman Khawaja smashes 11th test hundred.
He forges 159-run partnership with Steve Smith.
Steve Smith makes 72 before falling to Hasan Ali.

KARACHI: Usman Khawaja smashed his 11th test hundred and forged a 159-run partnership with Steve Smith to power Australia to 251 for three on the opening day of the second test against Pakistan on Saturday.

Islamabad-born Khawaja had fallen agonisingly short of a hundred in the opening test in Rawalpindi where he top-scored for his side with a breezy 97.

The elegant left-hander made amends in Karachi where he shelved the reverse sweep and made an unbeaten 127, which included 13 fours and a six.

Smith made 72 before falling to Hasan Ali in the penultimate over of the day.

Nightwatchman Nathan Lyon had yet to open his account.

“It would’ve been nice to have Smith there at the end too but we had a good partnership,” Khawaja said. “We’ve still got plenty of batting to come.

“It started to reverse in the second session and made it tough to score against the pace bowlers.”

Earlier, Australia got off to a strong start after Pat Cummins elected to bat on a dry surface at the National Stadium.

Khawaja looked in sublime touch and scored freely on the leg-side after being fed regularly on his pad.

His opening partner David Warner was less convincing, though, surviving a couple of LBW appeals and getting hit on his shoulder by a short delivery from Hasan Ali.

Warner hit Sajid Khan for a six to bring up Australia’s 50 in the 11th over.

Sajid conceded two more sixes in his fourth over, prompting Pakistan captain Babar Azam to take the spinner out of the attack.

Seamer Faheem Ashraf broke the 82-run opening stand with a back of a length delivery that Warner, who made 36, could only edge to Mohammad Rizwan behind the stumps.

Pakistan tasted a second success soon afterwards when Sajid ran out Marnus Labuschagne for a duck with a direct throw from mid-off.

Khawaja and Smith steadied the ship batting through the second session.

Khawaja took a single off Nauman Ali to bring up his third hundred in four tests since his recall in January after more than two years’ absence.

Pakistan spinners resorted to a negative line after tea, bowling way down the leg side, to stem the run flow and the batsmen were happy to just pad them away.

“In the last session, they bowled pretty leg side and had some negative plans to see if we’d play some shots,” Khawaja said.

“We decided not to and didn’t want to give them any free wickets.”

Smith, who made 78 in Rawalpindi, once again failed to convert his fifty into a hundred and edged Hasan for Faheem to take a low one-handed catch at second slip.

Leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson makes his test debut, joining Lyon in Australia’s two-man spin attack with Josh Hazlewood sitting out.

Teams:

Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam (captain), Fawad Alam, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Faheem Ashraf, Nauman Ali, Sajid Khan, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi

Australia: David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wicketkeeper), Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins (captain), Mitchell Swepson, Nathan Lyon

Latest News

Tickets for the Pakistan-India match were sold out in a matter of minutes.

Published

1 day ago

Farwa

The International Cricket Council (ICC) reports that tickets for the much awaited Pakistan-India encounter in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which is set to take place in Dubai, were sold out in a matter of minutes.

The tremendous demand for the Pakistan-India match underscores the fierce rivalry and excitement surrounding the tournament, even though tickets for the semi-finals are currently on sale.

Pavilion-specific ticket prices ranged from 500 AED for regular pavilion tickets to 1,200 AED to 5,000 AED for premium seats. The price of the elite Grand Lounge VIP packages was 12,500 AED, or roughly PKR 500,000.

On Tuesday, tickets will also go on sale for India’s first semi-final in Dubai as well as their final two group matches. Tickets for general stands are available for purchase online with prices for general stands starting at 125 AED.

Latest News

ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Today marks the start of the second phase of ticket sales.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Today marks the start of the second phase of the ICC Champions Trophy ticket sale.
Tickets for the opening match of mega event between Pakistan and New Zealand already sold out in the first Phase.
Following the Online sale of Tickets Last week, Physical Tickets for the Eight-Team competition will go on sale from Today.
Tickets for Matches in Pakistan including Group Stage Fixtures and the second Semi-Final will be Available at 108 Outlets of courier Service across the Country.
The Physical Tickets will be available to fans in 26 Cities of Pakistan.

For the ten matches that will be held in Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi, general stand tickets will start at 1,000 Pakistan Rupees, while premium seats in various categories will start at 1,500 Pakistan Rupees.
Tickets for the India matches scheduled for February 20 and 23 and March 2 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, will be made available as soon as possible.

Latest News

Will the Champions Trophy 2025 miss an opening ceremony?

Published

6 days ago

Farwa

The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 may commence without the traditional opening ceremony or captains’ press conference due to a modified arrival schedule for the participating teams.

This year, the England and Australia cricket teams will arrive in Pakistan nearer to the commencement of the event.

Sources inside the International Cricket Council (ICC) have verified that teams, including England and Australia, will arrive in Pakistan following their separate tours.

England is set to complete its tour of India by February 12, but Australia will conclude their series in Sri Lanka on February 14.

Consequently, both teams have retracted from the warm-up matches, a decision aligned with prior ICC events, where tardy attendance hindered practice matches.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) indicated interest in staging an opening ceremony; but, logistical issues related to the teams’ arrival dates resulted in its postponement.

The PCB stated that although the occurrence was not officially verified, it has consistently been regarded as a potentiality.

Although the opening ceremony and press conference have been cancelled, the PCB is dedicated to organising an alternative event to commemorate the importance of hosting the ICC Champions Trophy for the first time in 29 years.

The inaugural match of the tournament, featuring Pakistan and New Zealand, is set for February 19 in Karachi.

The PCB has stated that a celebration for fans will be organized ahead of the match to highlight the excitement surrounding the event.