Second Test, Pakistan v Australia (Abu Dhabi) – Day 4: Ow

Day 4: Pakistan 570/6 dec (Younis Khan 213, Azhar Ali 109, Misbah-ul-Haq 101, MG Johnson 3-39) & 293/3 dec (Misbah-ul-Haq 101*, Azhar Ali 100*) vs Australia 261 (MR Marsh 89, Imran Khan 3/60) & 4/134 (DA Warner 58, Zulfiqar Babar 3/65). Pakistan lead by 460 runs. Fat chance.

Well that was great.

Nothing like a quick public kick-up-the-bum to start the cricket season. Looking down the barrel of a clean sweep, the Australian cricket team have probably had the worst possible start to, as my Dad calls it, the real cricket season.

Pakistan have absolutely demolished Australia. They’ve had the upper hand ever since the second wicket of the series fell. That was when Johnson and Siddle removed the Pakistani openers for a combined total of 3, which were probably the only quick Pakistan wickets taken throughout the series.

SNJ O’Keefe, GJ Maxwell, MA Starc, MR Marsh, AJ Doolan – sorry guys, but this horror of a series isn’t the launch pad into the Australian side that you’re looking for. With the exception of Marsh. He’s got the second highest batting average in the team at the moment.

Talking of stats, here’s a few you’d probably only see in an extremely one-sided Under 14’s cricket comp, not international cricket:

Younis Khan: High Score 213, Average 156.00, Hundreds 3, Innings 4.

Safraz Ahmed: High Score 109, Average 143.00, Hundreds 1, Innings 3.

Hundreds in least balls: IVA Richards vs England 1986 and Misbah-ul-Haq vs Australia 2014 in 56 balls.

Pakistan, evidently, have had a pretty good time out there. I’m not going to go all doomsday at Australian cricket, but this series’ demolition job is worrying at the eve of the Australian summer. India and the Border-Gavaskar trophy are the Australians’ next challenge and if these Tests are anything to go by, the green and gold are in serious trouble.

The current Test match needs two things to turn into a plus for Australia. Both are centuries, to MR Marsh and SPD Smith. Both need to do a Younis Khan and block the living daylights out of the cricket ball until there’s nothing left of it. So far, the Australians have had one positive come out of the series: David Warner can keep.

Oh yeah, forgot to mention, Brad Haddin smacked his shoulder too. If that injury causes Haddin to drop out of the team – again – that does not do justice to Haddin’s character. When Brad Haddin retires, it will be when he is dragged of the pitch by the selectors, feet first. He’s not the man that would let a jarred shoulder and a shocking series get him down.

Day 5 will be either a two-nil clean sweep or a pride recovery job by the two batsmen out there at the moment. Let’s hope it’s the latter.

Comments

  1. Beautifully resilient, Paddy.
    Searching for the positives.
    Well played.

  2. Only a Tigers supporter could find positives in this shambles.
    Well done Paddy.
    “pride recovery” sounds like a gay AA meeting. Well, I guess the first thing is for the players to admit they’ve got a problem. Not in the media, but in their actions back on bouncier Australian wickets.
    Thanks PG.

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