Can anyone stop Australia in Australia? Well, if you have just begun following cricket, the answer would be no. Australia Cricket Team demolished Pakistan by 360 runs to take a 1-0 lead in the AUS vs PAK Test series. With the win, Australia also made it 15-0 against Pakistan. Former England captain Michael Vaughan heaped praise on Pat Cummins & Co, calling them the team for all conditions. However, the former English batter took a jibe at his rivals too, reminding them of India.
In a tweet, he lauded India saying “only India have the tools to compete here in Australia at this stage.”
Those who are unaware, India have won both Test series in Australia since 2017. In fact, it was the last Test series that traumatised Australia. An injury-hit, young team completed a heist in Gabba that no other team has been able to manage.
In 2016, Australia lost to South Africa at home. And since then, they have won nine Test series against Pakistan, England, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, West Indies and South Africa. But India have been their thorn. Even though Australia have defeated India to claim the ICC World Test Championship and World Cup trophies, in Test series, India have been the toughest opponents.
In fact, when everyone expected India to be demoralised after being dismissed for just 36 runs, India bounced back. With Virat Kohli leaving for home to attend birth of his first child, Ajinkya Rahane led the charge.
And to make things worse, all top bowlers including Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammad Shami and Jasprit Bumrah suffered series-ending injuries. It was up to Mohammed Siraj, T Natarajan and Navdeep Saini to do the job. And they did.
With Rishabh Pant and Shardul Thakur becoming the ultimate heroes, India claimed a 2-1 win in the series.
AUS vs PAK ends in 4 days
While Rishabh Pant and a young India team pulled off the biggest heist of modern day Test cricket, there was no such luck for Pakistan. AUS vs PAK 1st Test ended in just four days with Pakistan folding for just 89 runs in the second innings. It was a demolition job to say the least.
Only three batters could reach double-digit figures as Shan Masood & Co surrendered to the bowling brilliance of Australia’s attack. Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood bagged three wickets apiece. Pat Cummins bagged the prized wicket of Babar Azam. Nathan Lyon finished the job, entering 500-Test wicket club to wrap the match in four days.
Editors pick
