2nd Test, Abu Dhabi: Mohammad Abbas’ 10-wicket haul bowls Pakistan to series victory

Abbas became the first pace bowler to take ten wickets in a Test in the UAE as Australia were beaten by 373 runs.

Mohammad Abbas took ten wickets in Pakistan's 373-run win. @Getty

Ten wickets to Australia’s tormentor this series, Mohammad Abbas, bowled Pakistan to a crushing 373-run win in the second Test in Abu Dhabi and with it the series 1-0.

Abbas extended his series tally to 17 with the wickets of Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Aaron Finch and Tim Paine in a crippling morning spell as Australia slumped to 78/5, and then added Marnus Labuschagne immediately into the second session to hasten a massive win. This made him the first pace bowler to manage ten wickets in a Test match in the UAE.

With Usman Khawaja not going to bat after suffering a knee injury, Pakistan were victors when the ninth Australian wicket fell at 164, giving Yasir Shah his third.

From 47/1 overnight, Australia lost their second wicket when Abbas drew an edge off Head’s bat which gave the substitute wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan his first catch at Test level (Sarfraz Ahmed was sent for precautionary scans after being struck on the helmet while batting). In his next over, Abbas won an lbw shout against Marsh after successfully reviewing Richard Illingworth’s not out verdict. At 77/3, the wobble was on.

The came a crushing double-strike in the following over from Abbas, as Finch (31) was also trapped lbw with an in-cutter that thudded into the batsman’s pads. Three balls later, Paine suffered a brain fade when he chose not to offer a shot to Abbas and had his off stump knocked back.

Labuschagne and Mitchell Starc (28) put on 67 for the sixth wicket before Yasir had Starc lbw and then added Peter Siddle for 3 in his next over. Labuschagne was on a Test-best 43 at the lunch break but was dismissed by Abbas in his first over after lunch, a superb bouncer eliciting a thin edge as the batsman was hurried into a pul shot.

That gave Abbas ten for the match, and 17 for the series after seven in the drawn first Test. Yasir got the last wicket when he dismissed Jon Holland caught at slip.