Published: Oct 26, 2014, 05:12 PM (IST)
Edited: Oct 26, 2014, 05:30 PM (IST)
By Abhijit Banare
Oct 26, 2014
Pakistan completed an emphatic 221-run win over Australia, to register their first victory over the Aussies in four years. It was a clinical performance from Misbah-ul-Haq and co. who outclassed their opposition in all departments. Needing 378 on the final day with six wickets in hand, Pakistan were favourites to wrap up the match quickly. But Australia showed some fight by taking the match in to the last session thanks to some laboured display from Pakistan.
The first piece of resistance came from Chris Rogers (43) and Steven Smith who held on for just over an hour adding 33 more. It was Imran Khan who found the breakthrough with an accurate yorker. Two more wickets fell quickly with Mitchell Marsh and Brad Haddin back in the pavilion. It looked as though Pakistan would complete the formalities before lunch. But Smith and Mitchell Johnson went in to lunch unbeaten.
Resuming post lunch at 117 for seven, Johnson and Smith put up a strong resistance to put their opponents under pressure. And it didn’t do anything good for Pakistan when their fielders gifted Johnson and Smith two reprieves each. Sarfraz Ahmed missed a stumping while the other three were fairly easy catches. The duo batted with patience adding 65 runs in 173 balls. They finally managed to break the stand when Smith hopped down the track to work away a delivery and ended up giving a catch to silly mid-on. Smith’s dismissal rejuvenated the tired legs in the field as Pakistan once again came hard at the two tail-enders.
But the fight continued as Johnson not only got to his ninth Test fifty but Peter Siddle too showed his maturity to dead bat a desperate Pakistan bowling attack. After tea on the final day, Johnson stepped up the ante scoring a few boundaries. Misbah tried everything but failed to unsettle Johnson. The new ball was shared by Rahat Ali, Mohammad Hafeez and Imran Khan.
The long awaited breakthrough finally came thanks to some smart work by Sarfraz. Johnson had stretched way too forward and the ‘keeper whipped off the bails. An painful wait ensued before third umpire Nigel Llong gave it out. His fighting innings lasted for 127 balls off which he scored 61.
Zulfiqar finished off the proceedings with a fifer dismissing Peter Siddle. There was some drama involved as Siddle went for a review while the jubilant Pakistan players had already uprooted the stumps. But the decision was upheld.
Pakistan could’ve done a lot better than stretching themselves to this extent. Pakistan’s victory was set up by the spinners but things could’ve been different had their batting crumbled like in past defeats. This as the first instance of Pakistan scoring four hundreds in the same match against Australia. This little stat shows how well the batsmen played. Sarfraz hit the fourth fastest ton by a Pakistan keeper in the first innings with 109 while Younis Khan’s 106 was his first century against Aussies. With the first of the two tons, Younis managed to secure a ton against each of the Test playing nations.
The game-changing moment of the Test came on Day Three. Australia were 113 for no loss overnight in response to Pakistan’s 454. On the third morning their batting came apart. David Warner scored a record ton while the others around him struggled. Johnson contributed 37 down the order but the Aussies conceded a huge 151-run lead. Considering the deteriorating nature of the pitch, such a huge lead gave Pakistan the upper-hand.
But they didn’t stop there as Ahmed Shehzad and Younis smashed tons to post a mammoth 438-run target. In the process, Younis also became Pakistan’s leading centurion with 26 to his name. The last time someone scored a ton in each innings against Australia was Glenn turner back in 1974.
Australia once again collapsed late on Day Four putting Pakistan on the cusp of victory before the lower order decided to put forth a solid resistance. Pakistan showed shades of slipping up on the fifth day when the team failed to keep up with the pressure which allowed Australian tail to settle in.
Brief scores:
Pakistan 454 (Younis Khan 106, Sarfaraz Ahmed 109; Mitchell Johsnon 3 for 39) & 286 for 2 decl. (Ahmed Shehzad 131, Younis Khan 103*; S O’Keefe 2 for 112) lead Australia 303 (David Warner 133, Chris Rogers 38; Yasir Shah 3 for 39) & 216 (Steven Smith 55, Mitchell Johnson 61; Zulfiqar Babar 5 for 74, Yasir Shah 4 for 50) by 221 runs.
Man of the Match: Younis Khan
Complete coverage of Pakistan vs Australia 2014 in UAE
(Abhijit Banare is a reporter at CricketCountry. He is an avid quizzer and loves to analyse and dig out interesting facts which allows him to learn something new every day. Apart from cricket he also likes to keep a sharp eye on Indian politics, and can be followed on @AbhijitVirgo)
