MELBOURNE: Australia beat Pakistan by two wickets in the first One-Day International match of the series at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Monday.
Pakistan posted a total of 203 by batting first and Australia cruised home after hiccups in their innings. Pat Cummins won the toss and put Pakistan to bat.
Earlier, Pakistan bounced back after claiming three wickets in quick succession. Last three wickets fell at the score of 139.
Australia were 139 for three in 19.3 overs and suddenly fell to 139 for six in 20.2 overs.
Haris Rauf claimed three wickets, Shaheen Afridi two and Naseem Shah got one wicket.
Naseem Shah’s cameo of 40 runs helped Pakistan score 203 runs against Australia in the first ODI.
Skipper Mohammad Rizwan was the top scorer with 44 runs.
Pakistan batting line struggled since the start of play as both openers Saim Ayub (1) and Abdullah Shafique (12) departed early in the first ODI against Australia.
Babar Azam looked in good touch for 37 runs before getting bowled by a fuller length delivery by Adam Zampa.
Kamran Ghulam scored five runs, while Salman Agha scored 12 runs.
Shaheen Shah Afridi scored valuable 24 runs, while debutant Irfan Niazi got run out on 22 after getting slipped on the pitch while running for a single.
For Australia, Mitchell Starc took three, Pat Cummins and Adam Zampa two each, while Sean Abbott and Marnus Labuschagne claimed 1 wicket each.
Australia won the toss and decided to bowl first against Pakistan in the opening ODI match.
Both teams have faced each other in 108 games. Out of these, Australia has won 70 matches while Pakistan has won 34 games. One match ended in a draw while 3 ended with no result.
The hosts also have an upper hand at Melbourne Cricket Ground, winning 10 games out of 14 and losing only 4.
Pakistan XI
Abdullah Shafiq, Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Muhammad Rizwan (captain and wicket-keeper), Kamran Ghulam, Salman Ali Agha, Irfan Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf and Muhammad Hasnain.
Australia XI
Matt Short, Jake Fraser McGurk, Steve Smith, Josh Inglis (wicket-keeper), Marnus Labuschagne, Aaron Hardie, Glenn Maxwell, Sean Abbot, Pat Cummins (captain), Mitchell Starc, and Adam Zampa.
