Spencer Johnson took five wickets to help Australia crushes Pakistan in 2nd T20I and attain an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series here at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on Saturday.
Australia have won the toss and elected to bat first in the second T20I to level the three-match series in Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG)
Opening batters Matthew Short and Jake Fraser-McGurk came out all guns blazing, smashing Australia’s fastest fifty in T20I cricket in only 19 balls.
Pakistan’s captain, Mohammad Rizwan, brought Haris Rauf into the attack, and Rauf gave his team a breakthrough by taking the wicket of Fraser-McGurk (20 runs off 9 balls) in the fourth over, when Australia had scored 52 runs.
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Abbas Afridi was brought in from the other end and bowled Matthew Short in the fifth over, leaving Australia at 56-3. Matthew Short was the top scorer for Australia with 32 runs off 17 balls, hitting four boundaries, including two sixes.
Pakistan’s bowlers did a great job, not letting Australia make a strong comeback. They kept taking wickets at regular intervals, which made it hard for the Australian batsmen to score freely.
In the last over, Abbas Afridi took two wickets in two balls, dismissing Hardie and Spencer Johnson. However, he missed out on getting a hat-trick on the final delivery.
Haris Rauf led the bowling attack with impressive figures of 4 wickets for 22 runs, while Abbas Afridi took 3 wickets for just 17 runs. Sufiyan Muqeem also performed well, taking 2 wickets and giving away 21 runs.
Australia did not change their team from the first T20I, where they beat Pakistan in a rain-affected match in Brisbane. On the other hand, Pakistan made one change, replacing Haseebullah Khan with left-arm wrist-spinner Sufiyan Muqeem.
Pakistan had lost the first T20I against Australia, where Glenn Maxwell played a key role in Australia’s victory. However, it is worth mentioning that Pakistan had defeated Australia in the third and final ODI, securing their first series win in Australia since 2002.
Australian skipper Inglis said he “wasn’t too sure” if their total of 147 was enough to defend, admitting that the middle of their innings had been “really tough” as Pakistan’s bowlers adapted to conditions.
Pakistan skipper Rizwan was understandably disappointed after the match, particularly with some mistakes his players made on the field.
“If you look at the whole scenario of the match, if you drop crucial catches at a crucial time then it will always cost you,” he explained.
“If you play against Australia, we know they are not an easy team in these conditions and if you give them chances like that, you’ll make it very difficult.”
Playing XIs
Australia: Jake Fraser-McGurk, Matt Short, Josh Inglis (c)(wk), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Aaron Hardie, Xavier Bartlett, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson
Pakistan: Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan (c)(wk), Sahibzada Farhan, Usman Khan, Salman Agha, Irfan Khan, Abbas Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Naseem Shah,Haris rauf,Shaheen afridi
