BRISBANE, Australia: Australia defeated Pakistan by 29 runs in the rain-hit first T20I match of the three-match series on Thursday at The Gabba Stadium in Brisbane.
In response to Australia’s 94-run target, Pakistan only managed to score 64-9 in seven overs.
The Men in Green had a decent start as they amassed 12 runs for the loss of one wicket in the first over.
However, Pakistan then ran into a disastrous middle-order collapse, including the dismissals of key batters Babar Azam for just three runs and captain Mohammad Rizwan returned without scoring a run, and were consequently reduced to 20/5 in three overs.
Xavier Bartlett, who picked up two wickets in his first over, dismissed Salman Ali Agha for four to keep Pakistan under pressure. The right-arm pacer recorded brilliant bowling figures of 13/3 in his quota of two overs.
Coming out to bat at No.8 with Pakistan reeling at 24/6 in 3.2 overs, Abbas Afridi offered a notable fightback against the momentum-filled Australian bowling attack with an unbeaten 20-run cameo.
His efforts, however, were not enough to steer his side over the line as Pakistan succumbed to a 29-run defeat in the series opener.
Nathan Ellis led the bowling charge for Australia with astounding figures of 3/9 in two overs, while Adam Zampa bagged two wickets.
Earlier, Pakistani skipper Muhammad Rizwan won the toss and opted to field first, a decision influenced by overcast conditions and the weather forecast. Rain delayed the start, reducing the match to a 7-over-a-side game.
As Australia began their innings, they seemed prepared to score over 100, but they continued to lose wickets. Australia lost their first wicket at a score of 16 when J-Fraser McGurk, who scored 9 runs off 5 balls, was caught by Babar Azam, with Naseem Shah taking the wicket.
Australia’s second wicket fell at 35 runs when opener Matt Short was dismissed, caught by Babar Azam off Haris Rauf’s delivery.
The host team lost their third wicket at a total of 66 runs, as Glenn Maxwell, who scored a rapid 43 off 19 balls, was caught by Usman Khan off Abbas Afridi’s bowling.
Tim David was the fourth Australian player to be dismissed, scoring 10 runs off 8 balls, with the total at 73. He was caught by Sahibzada Farhan off Abbas Afridi’s bowling.
Marcus Stoinis contributed 21 runs off 7 balls, while Josh Inglis did not face a ball. Australia concluded their innings at 93 runs for the loss of 4 wickets after 7 overs, setting Pakistan a target of 94 to win the first T20I.
Pakistan Playing XI
Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan (c/wk), Sahibzada Farhan, Usman Khan, Salman Agha, Irfan Khan, Abbas Afridi, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haseebullah Khan, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah
Australia Playing XI
Jake Fraser-McGurk, Matt Short, Josh Inglis (c/wk), Glenn Maxwell, Tim David, Marcus Stoinis, Aaron Hardie, Xavier Bartlett, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson
