- Australia almost achieved a victory against Pakistan
- Pat Cummins’ team lost three wickets in quick succession
- They face each other again on Friday evening in Adelaide
Ultra-aggressive Australia almost secured a certain victory but ultimately steadied after a lightning spell from Haris Rauf that defeated Pakistan by two wickets in the first ODI at the MCG.
Chasing just 204, Australia crumbled to 6-139 in the 21st over as Rauf rounded the middle order as the hosts tried to end the match as quickly as possible.
But captain Pat Cummins (32*), playing his first ODI since last year’s stunning World Cup final, was there again in a tight chase at the end as Australia came home with 99 balls to spare.
One of the best fast drivers of his generation, Cummins has quickly become a specialist run-chaser over the past 18 months after being involved in two close Test wins and three ODI wins.
Rauf (3-67) continued his love affair with the MCG as he breathed life into what had been a simple chase by dismissing Marnus Labuschagne and Glenn Maxwell in successive balls.
The 30-year-old was unable to add another MCG hat-trick to the one he scored for the Melbourne Stars in the BBL in 2020, but his fiery spell drew roars from the passionate Pakistani fans who made up most of the 25,831 in the BBL. crowd.
Australia’s shot selection let them down as Matt Short, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Josh Inglis, Labuschagne and Aaron Hardie all made moves they would live to regret.
Inglis, who has made an impressive start to the domestic season, threw away a good start after reaching 49.
Pat Cummins’ side rallied to secure a thrilling win against Pakistan on Monday evening
A lightning spell from Haris Rauf (pictured) saw Australia lose the wickets of Marnus Labuschagne and Glenn Maxwell in successive balls
Hardie (10) inexplicably gave himself space to try to plod the ball to the offside but was instead bowled with 25 overs remaining.
Australian World Cup heroes Travis Head and Mitch Marsh are on paternity leave and will sit out all three matches.
Fraser-McGurk and Matt Short failed to impress as they tried to secure a place as Head’s opening partner ahead of next year’s Champions Trophy in Pakistan.
Pakistan used just four bowlers – all fast players – but conceded 21 extras, 17 of them wide.
Earlier, star paceman Mitchell Starc reached 100 ODI wickets faster than any bowler in Australia, breaking Brett Lee’s long-standing record.
Starc removed both Pakistani openers – Saim Ayub and Abdullah Shafique – to set the tone for Australia as they dismissed the tourists for 203.
The left-hander – who has the fourth most ODI wickets for Australia, behind only Glenn McGrath, Lee and Shane Warne – started the international summer in ominous form.
Starc – who had a short spell off the field to deal with cramps – nailed his line and length to finish with 3-33 after dismissing Shaheen Shah Afridi (24) in his 10th over.
His 100th wicket in Australia came in his 54th match, one better than Lee’s 55.
While Australia used eight bowlers after Cummins won the toss, legspinner Adam Zampa (2-64) was the only other bowler to take multiple wickets, but he went for 18 runs in his 10th over after being hit by Naseem Shah around the MCG .
The Pakistani fastman came into the match with just 31 ODI runs in his career but hit 40 in an explosive inning with four sixes.
Maxwell (right) was dismissed for a duck, while opener Matthew Short was dismissed for one run
Josh Inglis was Australia’s top scorer, hitting 49 off 42 deliveries before being caught by Irfan Khan
Pakistan ended up in Australia amid off-field turmoil after respected white-ball coach Gary Kirsten quit his position without actually taking charge in an ODI.
In their first ODI since last year’s World Cup, Pakistan struggled to gain any momentum and batted more like a 50-over match in the 1990s.
Babar Azam (37) and new Pakistan white-ball captain Mohammad Rizwan (44) tried to push for a competitive total but could never push the run-rate high enough.