LAHORE: Pakistan on Thursday won the toss and elected to bowl first against Australia in the second one-day international (ODI) of the three-match series at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore.
Shaheen Shah Afridi has returned to the squad in place of Hasan Ali, while Australia has made no changes in the playing XI.
Having lost the three-Test series 1-0 at the same venue, Babar Azam and his men look for a turnaround against a largely inexperienced yet professional Australian side.
The Men in Green showed poor performance in the opening game played sans key players Shaheen Afridi and Shadab Khan. Tuesday’s 88-run loss was Pakistan’s tenth consecutive ODI defeat at the hands of Australia, currently third on ICC one-day rankings.
Except for opener Imam-ul-Haq and skipper Babar, who scored a century and a half-century, respectively, the batters failed to develop big partnerships.
Pakistan’s bowling also lacked the sting which allowed Australia to post a huge 313-7. A Shaheen-less bowling attack comprising experienced pacer Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah plus debutants Mohammad Wasim and Zahid Mahmood could not stop the Australian onslaught.
Without experienced campaigners like Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Steve Smith, David Warner and Glenn Maxwell due to different reasons, the Aaron Finch-led Aussies still ruled the roost in the first ODI giving a wake-up call to Pakistan.
Pakistan need precious points from this ODI series to keep alive their hopes to qualify for the 2023 World Cup to be held in India. Currently, the greenshirts are 10th on the table, while seven top countries will qualify for the showpiece.
Playing XI:
PAKISTAN: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Haris Rauf, Zahid Mahmood, Shaheen Shah Afridi.
AUSTRALIA: Travis Head, Aaron Finch (captain), Ben McDermott, Marnus Labuschagne, Marcus Stoinis, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wicket-keeper), Sean Abbott, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Mitchell Swepson.
