[Watch] Pat Cummins gets Babar Azam on day 4 as ex-Pakistan captain suffers twin failures in 1st Test
Ex-Pakistan captain Babar Azam suffered a second consecutive failure in the ongoing first Test at Optus Stadium in Perth, falling cheaply on day 4 as Australian captain Pat Cummins got the massive scalp. With Babar falling for 14 in the second innings, he has aggregated only 35 runs in the match as Pakistan head towards a massive defeat.
The dismissal occurred only two overs before tea as Cummins' short-of-good-length delivery produced an extra bit of bounce, catching the right-hander's glove through to Alex Carey behind the stumps. The 29-year-old's dismissal wasn't too dissimilar in the first innings, poking at a nibbling delivery from Mitchell Marsh to edge it to the keeper.
Australia started the day at 84-2, leading by 300 runs, but lost two quick wickets in the form of Steve Smith and Travis Head. However, Mitchell Marsh and Usman Khawaja played their shots and actively looked for runs on a spiteful surface, sharing a quick-fire 126-run stand. After Shaheen Shah Afridi got Khawaja for 90, Cummins declared the innings. setting Pakistan 450.
Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood strike twice before Pat Cummins removes Babar Azam
Meanwhile, Mitchell Starc struck in the very first over of the innings, sending back Abdullah Shafique for a single-figure score. Josh Hazlewood came on to remove visiting captain Shan Masood, who poked at a delivery he could have left alone.
Starc returned to get the better of Imam-ul-Haq, who unsuccessfully took the DRS for a plumb LBW shout. Babar's failure in the match has indeed proved to be detrimental for Pakistan, as they showed remarkable improvement after managing no wicket in the opening session of day 1.
Masood and Co. also conceded a massive lead of 216 after the top-order batters showed grit, having leaked 487. Pakistan will hope to come back strongly in the Boxing Day Test, beginning on December 26.