Pakistan go into the second ODI at Lahore with a 1-0 lead after a five-wicket win in Rawalpindi. They put Australia in, bowled them out for 200 and chased the target with calm. Debutant spinner Arafat Minhas took five wickets, Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf applied early pressure, and Abrar Ahmed added two wickets in the middle overs.
With the bat Babar Azam led the chase with 69 and Mohammad Ghazi Ghori made 65. Sahibzada Farhan and Shamyl Hussain are expected to keep providing aggressive starts, with Babar’s experience the anchor for the home side at Gaddafi Stadium.
Australia are under pressure after losing control in the middle overs of the first game. Matt Short made 55 and Matt Renshaw 61, but Marnus Labuschagne and Cameron Green were both out for ducks. Josh Inglis, Green and Renshaw are central to their hopes, while Nathan Ellis (two wickets) and Adam Zampa were the best of the bowlers. Australia need to rotate strike better against spin, use the powerplay more effectively and find support for their pace attack in the death overs.
