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Hollioake too won’t join the depleted coaching staff as planned due to covid reasons

Andrew McGlashan02-Jan-2022Covid continued to stalk England’s preparations for the Sydney Test with Adam Hollioake unable to join the depleted coaching staff as planned, a scare involving the net bowlers at the ground on Sunday and a positive test for head coach Chris Silverwood.Hollioake, the former England ODI who now lives on the Gold Coast, had been due to join the squad which has seen Silverwood, pace bowling coach Jon Lewis, spin coach Jeetan Patel and strength and conditioning specialist Darren Veness all isolating in Melbourne. However he became a close contact and was forced into seven days isolation.It was confirmed later on Sunday that Silverwood had now tested positive. “He will remain in isolation until January 8. Silverwood is asymptomatic and is fully vaccinated,” the ECB said in a statement. “He is expected to return to the England party in Hobart ahead of the fifth Ashes Test.”During the team’s first training session at the SCG the net bowlers had to be withdrawn after one returned a positive test and the others were deemed close contacts.Both squads have been undergoing regular Covid-19 tests since the first case emerged in the England touring party on December 27. So far Travis Head is the only case among the Australia squad.England’s lack of coaches and net bowlers meant that captain Joe Root was among those who spent time giving throwdowns during today’s session. Assistant coach Graham Thorpe has taken charge for the Sydney Test supported by Ant Botha and James Foster.”We’ve had a lot of support staff missing,” Zak Crawley said. “But the lads have all worked together today, we’ve tried to all help out. We’ve all pulled together and have pulled through.”Crawley added that he would be comfortable if protocols were increased around the teams to ensure the series could be completed. Currently, the squads are under CA’s Level 4 restrictions which means they can still dine outdoors and have some level of freedom. New South Wales reported over 18,000 Covid-cases on Sunday.”We haven’t got long left,” he said. “I can’t speak for everyone on that but I want to play the two Tests.”Glenn McGrath has also tested positive meaning he will be unable to take part in events leading into the Test which raises money for the Jane McGrath cancer foundation.

A round-up of all the Ranji Trophy Group C matches on October 18, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Oct-2015
ScorecardFile photo: Shahbaz Nadeem collected 7 for 64•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Jharkhand’s left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem finished with career-best figures of 7 for 64, helping his team open their Ranji account with a 133-run victory against Kerala in Malappuram. Kerala, who came into the final day still needing 246 runs for a win, were dealt an early blow when Rohan Prem was trapped lbw off the fourth ball of the day. Akshay Kodoth (72) and Sachin Baby led a min-recovery, stringing together a 52-run partnership, but Baby’s wicket sparked a collapse that led to Kerala losing their last eight wickets for just 56 runs. Nadeem ran through the lower middle order on his way to collecting 7 for 64, as Kerala were bowled out for 183 inside 64 overs. 707 for 8 declared (Bist 220*, Bains 161, Dhawan 114) drew with Hyderabad 434 (Agarwal 118, Vihari 101, More 4-84) and 2 for 0
ScorecardRobin Bist’s unbeaten 220 and Rishi Dhawan’s 114 helped Himachal Pradesh amass a huge first-innings total of 707 for 8, as they took away three points from their drawn game against Hyderabad.HP resumed from an overnight score of 402 for 5 and added 305 runs in the 72 overs that they batted on the day, as Bist and Dhawan shared a 175-run partnership. Hyderabad’s captain Hanuma Vihari used as many as 10 bowlers in search of breakthroughs, three of whom conceded well over 100 runs. With HP batting out most of the day and only a few overs left, the two captains shook hands after the visitors batted for 13 overs, making just two runs in that period. For his unbeaten double-ton that featured 23 fours and one six, HP’s Bist was adjudged the Man of the Match.

Dane Paterson, the Cobras quick, has been called up as an emergency replacement for Wayne Parnell in the South Africa A squad that will take on England

Firdose Moonda18-Dec-2015Dane Paterson, the Cobras quick, has been called up as an emergency replacement for Wayne Parnell in the South Africa A squad that will take on England in a three-day warm-up match in Pietermaritzburg starting on Sunday. Parnell has picked up a foot injury and will not be able to take part in the match.The news will come as a blow to Parnell’s long-form ambitions and hopes of an international recall after he was left out of South Africa’s squad to tour India in October and November. Parnell, who also plays for the Cobras, has been opening the bowling in the recently completed 20-over competition and twice opened the batting as well. He was being primed for a comeback after last playing a Test in March 2014 and took part in the South Africa A side’s tour of India.Paterson was also part of that A series and opened the bowling with Parnell. The visit was tough on both of them – they only picked up a wicket apiece – but Paterson has been on the selectors’ radar since he topped the first-class bowling charts last season. In nine matches for the Cobras, Paterson took 42 wickets at 22.54 to take his overall tally to 228 first-class wickets at an average of 21.81.He will bowl alongside Marchant de Lange, who is challenging for a Test spot, and Chris Morris in a strong A side. South Africa have named the two wicketkeeper batsmen competing for a place in the senior side, Dane Vilas and Quinton de Kock, although neither of them is part of the squad for the first two Tests, and also included left-hander Rilee Rossouw, who has recovered from a stress fracture and is the reserve batsman in the Test squad.South Africa have received some good news ahead of the Test series against England, with Dale Steyn passing a fitness test on the groin injury he suffered in India last month.

John Turner’s maiden five-for followed by nerveless Toby Albert finale

ECB Reporters Network14-Aug-2022John Turner’s maiden professional five-wicket haul and Toby Albert’s nerveless unbeaten 65 maintained Hampshire’s 100 per cent Royal London Cup record in a nail-biting victory over Lancashire.South African-born Turner’s five for 25 led an impeccable fast bowling display from Hampshire, with Jack Campbell and Scott Currie removing the rest.In form batter Rob Jones crashed 84 in a 119 partnership with Steven Croft, to take his competition average to 239, as Lancashire scored 183.Liam Hurt’s brutally quick three for 25 made sure Hampshire couldn’t ease to victory but 20-year-old Albert, on the back of a match-winning 84 against Derbyshire, managed to get his side over the line with 10 balls to spare.Related

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Hampshire’s eight-wicket victory keeps them top of Group B with a perfect record, with Lancashire now three points adrift with three wins, a washout and this defeat – both will expect to make the knockout stage.On a blistering quick wicket, having been asked to bowl by Keaton Jennings, Campbell and Turner had Lancashire seven for 3 inside five overs.
Turner’s first delivery of the match set the tone, with Ben Brown taking the ball at shoulder height a couple of steps in from the 30-yard circle. Jennings couldn’t resist attempting to cut at one though on his return from Lions duty, but the extra bounce found his edge.Luke Wells impatiently skied Campbell and Josh Bohannon was caught behind to a ball which gloriously shaped in.Lancashire still hadn’t scored off a run off the bat at this stage, but Jones pushed and ran to cover before unfurling a square drive to begin a very profitable, and needed fourth-wicket partnership.Jones has been in fine form in the competition with scores of 70 and 85, both without being dismissed. Here he was effortless in reaching a 60-ball fifty, often using the bounce to his advantage.The pair had recovered the situation before Lancashire collapsed again, with the last seven wickets falling for 57 runs. Croft was yorked by Campbell to end the county’s record fourth-wicket stand against Hampshire before George Balderson clothed Turner to midwicket.Currie then opened the floodgates with a triple wicket maiden, taking three wickets in four balls. Jones fell for the first time in this season’s cup when he cut to point, Tom Bailey edged behind first ball before Will Williams defended his first ball but was pinned second. George Lavelle and Liam Hurt were both caught trying to attack Turner to give him his five.Hampshire plodded rather than attacked the target. Ben Brown, promoted to open, was lbw to a Bailey delivery which seamed in, Tom Prest dragged a wide Hurt ball onto his stumps having been bogged down, and Nick Gubbins fell into a perfectly placed short extra cover trap off Balderson.Hurt’s searing pace had Aneurin Donald chopping down and Fletcha Middleton caught behind with a frighteningly quick delivery from his long run-up and low action. Felix Organ also hit onto his own stumps off Bailey and Scott Currie swung two boundaries before he was pinned by Luke Wells.Sixteen-year-old debutant Dom Kelly belied his inexperience with 17 in a 38-run stand with Albert but cut to point with 18 still needed. But Albert reached back-to-back fifties in 64 balls and ticked off the remaining runs with Turner to the backdrop of a raucous crowd, with the winning runs a lofted on-drive for four.

Cameron Bancroft, who struck 150 off 267 balls to subdue India’s three-pronged spin attack on a slow pitch by sweeping and advancing down the track, stressed that he had used the sweep as an attacking option

Deivarayan Muthu in Chennai30-Jul-20151:54

Scoring big hundreds is a focus for me – Bancroft

Australia A batsman Cameron Bancroft, who struck 150 off 267 balls to subdue India’s three-pronged spin attack on a slow pitch by sweeping and advancing down the track, stressed that he had used the sweep as an attacking option.”I definitely have my plans to use both options. To be able to come down the wicket and also to be able to use the sweep shot. I think being able to do both really helped me get on top of the bowler, put him under pressure and rotate the strike and keep the scorecard ticking over,” Bancroft said.”So, it’s something I have worked a lot on, especially the sweep shot and it worked pretty well for me. It was a pretty good option to get off strike and as I said, keep the scoreboard ticking over.”Bancroft also credited Matthew Hayden and Australia A consultant, S Sriram, for offering vital inputs on handling spin.”Sri came over in an Academy team in early June. Sri came and did a few sessions with us. He has been awesome. Just to get comfortable playing defence, that has certainly helped me a lot,” Banscroft said. “Being comfortable with the ball spinning past the bat and as long as you are playing the line and playing straight, that’s okay. I have been working hard on the sweep and things like that. He has given me a lot of confidence.”You get a lot of coaches that come up. I think Matty Hayden came up last year. It was awesome talking to him about sweeping and playing spin. You get ideas from lot of coaches, you apply to yourself and see what works.”Australia A assistant coach Stuart Law lauded Bancroft for driving the visitors onward with positive strokeplay.”We have been brought up to get the game moving forward,” Law said. “We see it as, if you are a batsman your job is to score runs. Survival is one thing but there is a way of survival as well. Our footwork and clearness of mind is more in the forefront. I think the way Cam Bancroft played in the game was outstanding.”Law, who has had coaching stints with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, conceded that it was a tough challenge for overseas coaches to adjust to the subcontinent.”It is very difficult for an overseas coach to come into a sub-continental area. Different cultures, different backgrounds. The biggest trouble would be the way the communication is transferred between captain and players, coach and players,” Law said.”I have been in the sub-continent for a bit, your first experience isn’t always memorable. But as you understand the place and learn the culture and I think it’s pretty important that you learn the culture and learn how things work. Its quite enjoyable coming in. If someone’s knocking on the door and having a chat about doing that [coaching India] I would be more than happy to sit down and listen.”

Marnus Labuschagne said that the players felt Smith was set for a big innings

AAP09-Jul-2022Steven Smith’s closest batting ally has warned the floodgates could open again after he broke his 18-month Test century drought against Sri Lanka.Smith went to stumps unbeaten on 109 at the end of day one in Galle, helping put Australia in control of the second Test after a 134-run stand with Marnus Labuschagne.Without a century since January 2021, Smith was back to his classic best on Friday in a near faultless 212-ball display.”The boys said this morning when he rocked up to the ground, he was in the Smudge headspace and he looked locked in,” Labuschagne said.Related

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It showed. In control from the outset, Smith waited on loose balls from Sri Lanka’s bowlers as he punished anything full and hit it to the cover or long-on boundary.On one of the few occasions a ball beat Smith’s bat, the right-hander gave an immediate thumbs-up down the wicket to debutant Prabath Jayasuriya. But moments like that were few and far between.The vice-captain produced arguably the best two shots of the day, twice punching Jayasuriya past mid-on for four. Ten of his 13 boundaries came down the ground, as he got to the pitch of the ball well and controlled the game.Steven Smith plays through the leg side•AFP

Smith had maintained in recent months that his longest drought since his first Test ton in 2013 had not been playing on his mind. But the joy was evident to see when he brought up his century, driving Kasun Rajitha through the covers and raising his arms aloft after hugging team-mate Alex Carey.”With someone of his calibre, he almost never feels like he’s out of form.” Labuschagne, who also hit 104, said. “It’s just for him the standard he’s set is so high that when it drops a little bit, his expectations are still at that really high level.”He’s a very harsh critic on himself, having set a standard for Australia for the last eight or nine years. He’s always still hitting the ball well. It’s just confidence thing.”Getting that one today, I think is really going to open up the floodgates and we could have a really big next 10 Tests or so in the next year.”After admitting he had missed the pressure of batting on spinning wickets last month, Smith’s runs were desperately needed by Australia. Brought to the wicket at 70 for 2, the tourists would have found themselves in trouble if Smith had fallen early.Smith’s century brought him back level with Joe Root on 28, after it had been pointed out to him during the week the former England captain had briefly overtaken him.He is also now level with Michael Clarke for the fifth most hundreds in Australia’s history, with only Ricky Ponting, Steve Waugh, Matthew Hayden and Don Bradman ahead of him.

Manchester Originals take their defence of 120 to the wire in low-scoring thriller

Vithushan Ehantharajah03-Sep-2022Trent Rockets 121 for 8 (Malan 19, Little 2-18) beat Manchester Originals 120 for 9 (Turner 26, Cook 4-18) by two wicketsOne of the many criticisms of the 2022 edition of the men’s Hundred was the lack of close finishes. The kind which build legends and tear down legacies, or even simply give mortals a taste of nectar or soul-crushing agony. Now, in the 32nd and final game, we had it.Trent Rockets won the Hundred, and to work out how would require starting right at the end. A chase of 121 which always felt on the verge of going off the rails had somehow stayed upright until the final five deliveries, with a seemingly unlikely 11 required for victory. Lewis Gregory, captain of the Rockets, Somerset till he dies, England once in a while, found them within three.A miraculous flat six over square leg from a near-perfect leg-stump yorker was the surprise knife into the side of Manchester Originals. The four flicked around the corner from a next-ball full toss, then the single to take Rockets over the line, simply twisted it.As Gregory roared like a man finally being allowed to exorcise the tension he had managed so well up to that point, Richard Gleeson fell to his knees, eyes red from the pain of knowing he was most to blame. More so through having the courage and trust to deliver that final set. His second ball could have been better, but the first was more or less exactly what he wanted. It didn’t matter what the third was.Having been there at the end of Lancashire’s last-ball defeat in the Vitality Blast final against Hampshire, this was another demoralising moment for Gleeson – at the end of an otherwise breakthrough summer in which he’s made his England debut and earned a role as a designated reserve for the T20 World Cup. One crumb of comfort was how quickly he rose to his feet to congratulate the victors. The 34-year-old is no stranger to returning from adversity.How we got to this finish will remain a mystery, because nothing about how the match’s previous 195 deliveries suggested anything close to a high drama, high-quality finale. There was ebb and flow, which isn’t exactly what this format is supposed to be about. The scores and balls go up, then they come down, while the broadcasters assure you this is the best thing ever. By the end, they weren’t even hamming it up.Everyone got what they wanted at the toss. Manchester Originals chose to bat first, which suited Trent Rockets who were going to bowl. Midway through the fifth set, with Originals reeling on 22 for three – captain Laurie Evans, wily fox Wayne Madsen and soon-to-be England’s T20 starting opener Phil Salt all seen off in the space of 23 balls – it looked like one team had it very wrong.Sam Cook made the initial breakthroughs•Getty Images

Perhaps cues should have been taken from the women’s game. Oval Invincibles played a tacky pitch better than Southern Brave, in part because they could plan a route to their target of 102 rather than thrash around blindly on a pitch that wasn’t conducive to an engaging spectacle. By CricViz’s metrics, this was the toughest surface for batting in the Hundred this season.It was made that little harder by Sam Cook and Samit Patel, whose variants of seam and spin claimed four for 18 and three for 23 respectively. Cook’s were split evenly between the first 20 and final 20 deliveries. Evans was trapped lbw and Madsen bowled, before he returned at the death to remove Tom Lammonby with a leg-stump yorker and then castle Gleeson.Patel’s work, however, kept an explosive middle-order under wraps. Tristan Stubbs was undone by a bit of bounce – a top-edged sweep to fine leg taken superbly by wicketkeeper Tom Moores as he tracked the ball towards fine leg. The long levers of Walter came and went, as a leading edge found a sprawling Dawid Malan at cover to leave Patel on a hat-trick.The third did not come immediately, but it was perhaps the most valuable of the lot. Ashton Turner, Originals’ replacement for Andre Russell, was finding more joy than any of his team-mates, even striking Patel into the stands at midwicket for the only six of the innings. An attempt to repeat the shot against the 37-year-old found Cook in the deep. Nevertheless, the Australian’s jolt of adrenaline was enough for the tail to sneak to 120.Even with the deck as it was, the expectation was of a comfortable Rockets win, given a line-up packed full of international experience. However, their three T20I centurions all underwhelmed: Alex Hales clubbed Little to cover, Malan (19) gifted Stubbs a leading edge into the covers off Walter, and Colin Munro (16) gave Parkinson the last laugh with a catch at long-off after striking him for back-to-back fours.Patel offered little with the bat. He was struck on the head by a Walter short ball and then fell for just nine from 13 to leave a testing yet achievable 36 from 26. By the final 15, just after Moores had become Walter’s second, there were 24 required which became 15 from 13 when a scampered three was followed by a Daniel Sams heave to leg off Tom Hartley that was carried over the boundary by Lammonby.Related

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Another go at clearing that region went too straight and into Stubbs’ mitts at long-on, the first of two wickets for four runs in the eight balls that led to Gleeson’s fateful final five.The journey to that point had been long and winding, beginning at the start of August and featuring a Friday-night detour to the Ageas Bowl for Manchester Originals to earn the right to be here. And now, thanks to two wickets each for Little, Walter, Hartley and Parkinson, they were on the verge of doing it the hard way. Now they’ll have to start from the beginning and do it all again.As for the Rockets, this was no less than they deserved. They have set the standard in the men’s competition, right down to leaning on Nottinghamshire’s fashioning of Trent Bridge into one of the best short-form venue experiences in the world. For the longest time, the ground and the county have set a high standard for white ball cricket. Now they have another trophy to show for it, after a match that served a timely reminder that, no matter the format, cricket always wins.

Chris Harris, the former New Zealand spinner, told Southwark Crown Court how Chris Cairns “almost seemed like he was not pleased” when his team, Chandigarh Lions, beat Mumbai Champs in a Indian Cricket League contest in March 2008

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Oct-2015Chris Harris, the former New Zealand allrounder, told Southwark Crown Court how Chris Cairns “almost seemed like he was not pleased” when his team, Chandigarh Lions, beat Mumbai Champs in a Indian Cricket League contest in March 2008 that has since been tainted with allegations of match-fixing.Cairns, who denies two counts of perjury and perverting the course of justice, had worn an “unusual” expression on his face at the moment of victory in Hyderabad, according to Harris, after Chandigarh’s wicketkeeper, Sarabjit Singh, had cracked 41 not out from 22 balls to seal a two-wicket victory in the final over of the match.The match has previously been identified by Lou Vincent, who gave evidence during the first week of the trial, as one of “three or four” fixtures that he had been paid by Cairns to manipulate.Harris, who played in all three ICL tournaments in 2007 and 2008, described Chandigarh’s target of 136 as “modest”, adding that Sarabjit had played a “splendid innings” to rescue his team from 70 for 6 in the 13th over. However, he also recalled “a number of strange incidents” in the course of the contest.In the end, Sarabjit sealed the match with a six, and footage of the winning moment was played by Orlando Pownall, QC, Cairns’ defence lawyer, to the court. In it, Cairns was seen smiling and embracing one of his team-mates.”It’s perfectly plain, that after that six went over the boundary, the Chandigarh Lions appeared to be delighted,” said Mr Pownall. “Do you agree?””I don’t believe that was the footage I saw,” Harris replied. “I would agree with you that was a fair amount of emotion after winning a game.”Harris, who was captain of Hyderabad Heroes, also recalled a match against Chandigarh in which Cairns had won the toss and batted first, despite the fact that 80 percent of the teams that bowled first had won on that particular ground. “It was a bit of a surprise to me,” he recalled.Harris also claimed that Cairns’ co-defendant and former attorney, Andrew Fitch-Holland, who denies perverting the course of justice during his client’s libel action against Lalit Modi in 2012, had admitted Cairns’ guilt even before that case went to court.Cairns successfully sued Modi after he tweeted allegations of match-fixing in 2010. However, Harris claimed that, during a Lashings game at Bromley Cricket Club, Fitch-Holland had conceded Cairns’ guilt in a conversation with a group of players.”Someone asked him a question along the lines of “poor Cairnsy, what’s up with Cairnsy?”, Harris told the court. “Mr Fitch-Holland, to my surprise, replied ‘Cairnsy’s guilty’.”Sasha Wass, QC, the crown prosecutor asked Harris to clarify whether this conversation had taken place before or after the libel action.Harris replied: “I believe it was before.”However, under cross-examination from Mr Pownall, Harris conceded that he may have been mistaken, as his name had not appeared on the records for any Lashings match at Bromley in 2009.”That possibly could be the case,” said Harris.The comment, it was suggested, may have related to Cairns’ marital problems.The trial will continue from 12 noon on Tuesday.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has increased the number of women’s central contracts from 21 to 22, and retained Sana Mir, Bismah Maroof, Javeria Khan and Asmavia Iqbal in the top category

Umar Farooq04-May-2016The PCB has increased the number of women’s central contracts from 21 to 22, and retained Sana Mir, Bismah Maroof, Javeria Khan and Asmavia Iqbal in the top category. Fast bowler Kainat Imtiaz was moved from category C to D while opener Marina Iqbal has been dropped from B to C.

The contract list

Category A (PKR 1,00,500, USD 960)
Sana Mir, Bismah Maroof, Javeria Khan, Asmavia Iqbal
Category B (PKR 85,000, USD 810)
Nida Dar, Anam Amin, Nain Abidi
Category C (PKR 65,000, USD 620)
Sadia Yousuf, Sidra Nawaz, Rabiya Shah, Sidra Ameen, Nahida Khan, Aliya Riaz, Iram Javed, Marina Iqbal, Sania Khan
Category D (PKR 30,000, USD 285)
Muneeba Ali, Almas Akram, Aiman Anwer, Diana Baig, Ayesha Zafar, Kainat Imtiaz

Muneeba Ali, Almas Akram, Aiman Anwer, Diana Baig, Ayesha Zafar are the new inclusions in the contract list. Uncapped players Fareeha Mehmood and Maham Tariq, along with fast bowler Sumaiya Siddiqi, who played nine limited-overs games in 2015, were not awarded a contract.Left-arm spinner Anam Amin, who took 33 wickets in 17 limited-overs matches in 2015, has been promoted to category B from C. Sania Khan, who last played for Pakistan in November 2015, has been demoted from from B to C.”These contracts have been given to women cricketers for their outstanding performance and progress they have shown in domestic and international events throughout the year 2015,” the PCB said in a release. “The one-year contract is effective from January 1, 2016, and is divided into four categories (A, B, C and D).”Despite lacking an organised international calendar, Pakistan Women have put in impressive performances at global events. They beat India and Bangladesh in the group stage of the recently-concluded World T20 in India, but failed to make the semi-final after losing to West Indies and England.

Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf knocked the top of the visitor’s batting

Danyal Rasool02-Apr-2022After a month of Australia making Pakistan work for every run, wicket and win, here was the exception to the rule. In a rare lacklustre performance, Australia found themselves blown away by a dominant performance as they were crushed by nine wickets to seal a 2-1 series win.It came courtesy of a fiery fast bowling performance, and an unbeaten 190-run partnership between Babar Azam and Imam-ul-Haq. Pakistan had put Australia in to bat, skittling them out inside 42 overs for 210 before making light work of that target on a featherbed of a surface, with Imam and Babar making an unexperienced Australian bowling attack look particularly toothless. An undefeated 105 by Babar, his second consecutive hundred, and an unbeaten 89 from Imam helped Pakistan canter to a nine-wicket win with 73 balls to spare.Australia knew it was coming, and yet there seemed no way to stop it. A sensational – and yet by now, almost predictable – first over from Shaheen Shah Afridi got rid of Travis Head, dealing Australia a blow that left them groggy throughout the innings, and Haris Rauf removed Aaron Finch before Australia were off the mark.Magicians tend not to perform their tricks too often, but repetition doesn’t make Afridi any less inscrutable. It was a full toss that did for Head first up, but with the moving in the air, there was little the batter could do to prevent it crashing into off stump.Finch has struggled this series, and it showed in the way he tried to tackle Rauf, playing listlessly across the line and finding himself trapped plumb in front. Australia were yet to put a run on the board, and the discipline of Pakistan’s pace bowlers meant they couldn’t get off to the brisk start that characterised their first two innings. Rauf coaxed an edge out of Marnus Labuschagne early, and the normally fluid Ben McDermott got bogged down, managing just 14 in his first 34 balls.Australia looked to be rebuilding with a 53-run stand, but Zahid Mahmood drew a leading edge from Marcus Stoinis as Imam took a sharp catch, before Mohammad Wasim ended McDermott’s innings of attrition. A handy rearguard from Alex Carey and Cameron Green followed, with the batters capitalising on a drop in intensity from the hosts. The field spread out and easy singles are available, and with the frontline fast bowlers out of the attack, Australia were steadily rebuilding as they pushed towards a competitive total. Carey brought up a 55-ball half century two balls after a glorious six over cover drive off Wasim, and for the first time, Pakistan were on the back foot.Babar Azam punches down the ground•PCB

That ended soon after, though, when a bit of reverse swing did for Green as he heaved wildly across the line. It opened the floodgates, and four wickets fell for 18 runs as Rauf and Afridi returned to chip in. But in an entertaining six-over passage of play, Sean Abbott threw caution to the wind, swinging for the fences just about every delivery, riding his luck and further antagonising an increasingly irate Afridi. He managed the strike expertly; Adam Zampa never even got off the mark through the partnership, and by the time he chipped one to short third off Rauf, he’d scored a 40-ball 49. With the target set at 211, Abbott had given himself and his fellow bowlers something to work with.But two days out from a match that saw 348 prove inadequate, any hope Australia harboured of a series win hinged on early wickets, and several of them. It was in that department where Australia’s absences were really felt tonight. Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Ellis and Abbott simply don’t possess the qualities of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, and especially Mitchell Starc to blast out an opposition, not least a top order as settled as Pakistan’s is right now.Fakhar Zaman fell for a brisk 17, but with the asking rate hovering around four, the match situation was primed for the more sedate and assured Babar and Imam. Babar being put down at short midwicket on 1 felt like a significant moment in the game, but Australia’s sloppiness in the early overs meant it didn’t come as much of a surprise. A couple of boundaries in the ninth over composed the Pakistan captain, and once that partnership established a foothold, any Australian optimism quickly fizzled out.What followed was a cavalcade of class from the two highest runscorers this series. They appeared to rotate the strike and find the boundaries at will against spin and seam alike. Imam skipped down the wicket to smash Zampa to cow corner, before Babar caressed boundaries off Green off the next two balls either side of the wicket as the target and asking rate shrunk by the over. At last, it looked like a contest between a full-strength home side and a depleted touring party stretched particularly thin.Babar was the more proactive partner, and got a 16th ODI hundred before the game was won, as the two old friends performed a little jig mid-run to celebrate. Imam, meanwhile, would be denied the chance for a third successive hundred simply because Pakistan ran out of runs to chase, and capped a sensational series by knocking off the winning runs, skipping down the wicket to send Labuschagne down the ground.On a tour where Australia have been blown away by Pakistan’s hospitality, tonight was the night the generosity finally ran out.