PAK vs AUS prediction: Who will win the 2nd Test?
Australia and Pakistan will lock horns in the second game of a three-match Test series, starting Friday, March 12. The National Stadium in Karachi will host the contest.
Ahead of the second Test, talks of the probable nature of the pitch at the National Stadium are taking place. It’s after how the track in the first Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium behaved. Former Aussie skipper Steve Smith called the deck ‘dead and benign’ after the game ended in a draw.
Skipper Pat Cummins also said that the hosts tried to take the advantage away from the pacers. Cummins was the only Aussie pacer to pick up a wicket while Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood returned empty-handed. Shaheen Afridi got two wickets for the Pakistan team.
Ramiz Raja, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman, in the meantime, admitted that drawn Tests aren’t good advertisements for the purest format of the game. But he also said Pakistan couldn’t have afford to produce a bouncy wicket and play in the hands of the Aussies.
Going into the second Test, the Aussies are mulling a change or two. Mitchell Swepson may get his maiden Test cap. If he gets in, he will be the first leg-spinner to play Test cricket for Australia since Bryce McGain in 2009. Nathan Lyon has shouldered Australia’s spin-attack over the last few years.
Pakistan, on the other hand, will be fairly high on confidence after losing only four wickets in the previous game. Imam-ul-Haq was named the Player of the Match after scoring two back-to-back centuries. He also shared an unbeaten 252-run stand with Abdullah Shafique in the second innings.
Veteran Azhar Ali also got his form back with a stupendous century in Pakistan’s first innings. Nauman Ali was the pick of the Pakistan bowlers as he picked up a six-wicket haul on an unresponsive pitch. David Warner said that Lyon hardly got any assistance from the rough patches.
Faheem Ashraf tested positive for COVID-19 recently, but he has joined the squad after returning a negative rapid antigen test. The hosts are also confident that Hasan Ali will be fit for the Karachi Test.
Will Australia (AUS) beat Pakistan (PAK)?
The Australian batters found it tough to tackle Pakistan’s spin attack even on a good pitch to bat on. The pitch in Karachi is expected to be a tad more spinner-friendly. Pakistan are slight favorites to come up trumps in their next encounter.
Prediction: Pakistan to win the match