Australia 93 for 4 (Maxwell 43, Stoinis 21*, Afridi 2-9) won Pakistan 64 for 9 (Afridi 20*, Ellis 3-9, Bartlett 3-13) by 29 runs
It was a shortened match at the Gabba, and Australia dealt with it quickly. After persistent rain and lightning delayed the start by almost three hours and reduced the game to a seven-over shootout, Australia inflicted a crushing 29-run defeat on Pakistan. Glenn Maxwell, who struggled in the previous ODI series, powered his way through the innings with 43 for 19, before Pakistan fell to 24 for six in the first four overs before finishing with 64 for nine.
Mohammad Rizwan scored correctly at the toss and, as expected, set up Australia. But the hosts had clarity of purpose from the start, looking to hit a boundary with every ball, aware that wickets didn’t really matter that much. Shaheen Shah Afridi was sacked for 16 in his first over to set the tone, and although Haris Rauf’s tight first over had Maxwell flailing, the tide would soon turn.
Maxwell deployed the reverse hit expertly, using the players’ rhythm to move his shots away. Afridi was spectacularly dismissed by third man for six, before attacking Rauf, his ODI tormentor, smashing 19 off his second over. When he holed out to Abbas Afridi, Tim David and Marcus Stoinis took over, with Stoinis’ 20 off Naseem in the final over to see Australia rise to 93.
Pakistan started the innings with Sahibzada Farhan smashing two boundaries off the first two balls, but that was as good as the chase got for the visitors. Spencer Johnson got him two balls later. A remarkable passage of play began where five wickets fell in 12 balls for eight runs. Mohammad Rizwan clipped Xavier Bartlett to point back for a duck, and Usman Khan sent one into the deep throat of third man later in the over.
Babar Azam, who came in third, missed a half-volley off Nathan Ellis’ first ball, and Irfan Khan joined him two balls later. When Salman Ali Agha, debutant and vice-captain, skied Ellis, Pakistan was on the brink of a huge defeat, despite the very restricted nature of the game.
But Pakistan managed to restore some respectability to the score in the last three overs, mainly when Haseebullah Khan and Abbas scored 18 in the fifth over. However, wickets would continue to fall and Ellis would trap Haseebullah for his third wicket. When Adam Zampa came in to bowl the final over, Shaheen managed to smear one for six, but in an innings characterized by clusters of rapidly falling wickets, Zampa signing off with consecutive wickets off his last two balls was fitting. end.
