Naseem Shah drags Pakistan to 203

Pakistan put up a disappointing show with the bat in the first match of the Australian summer to get bowled out for just 203 at the MCG in the opening ODI. Australia were in control right from the outset and if not for Naseem Shah’s entertaining cameo, the visitors wouldn’t have gotten anywhere close to 200.

Mitchell Starc took less than two overs to make an impact with the new ball as debutant Saim Ayub chopped one on to his stumps. The first boundary for Pakistan came only in the sixth over of the innings but Abdullah Shafique was immediately dismissed to add further pressure. Playing their first ODI in nearly a year, Pakistan had to rely once again on Babar Azam and new skipper Mohammad Rizwan to bail them out of trouble.

Babar, struggling for runs in Test cricket, appeared to be at his best again in the 50-over format as he made a great start to his innings with some delightful boundaries. A pull shot against Starc saw Babar race to 26 off just 19 balls whereas Rizwan at the other end made a very watchful start, batting on 7 off 25 at one point. Unfortunately for the visitors, Babar misread the length against Adam Zampa in his first over and saw his off stump get knocked back. That wicket was massive considering Babar was the only batter who appeared to be batting on a different surface compared to the rest.

A snorter from Pat Cummins, who was also playing his first ODI since the World Cup final last year, saw the back of Kamran Ghulam. At 70/4, Pakistan were in desperate need of huge partnerships. Rizwan broke the shackles with a six against Starc but Agha Salman mistimed a pull to fall for a scratchy 29-ball 12. The big wicket arrived a few overs later as Marnus Labuschagne came into the attack and immediately removed Rizwan with a googly as the skipper only managed to top edge while attempting a sweep.

Things could have gone completely downhill at 117/6 but Irfan Khan and Shaheen Afridi dragged the innings further with handy contributions before Naseem struck some telling blows towards the end. Having already smacked two sixes, Naseem took on Zampa for two sixes and a four in one to guide Pakistan past the 200-run mark before Cummins brought an end to his enterprising knock.

Brief scores: Pakistan 203 in 46.4 overs (Mohammad Rizwan 44, Naseem Shah 40; Mitchell Starc 3/33, Pat Cummins 2/39) vs Australia