Pakistan's seven-wicket implosion brings new lows to hosts, new heights to Aussie quicks in Asia
Pakistan's seven-wicket implosion in the final hour of Day 3 has handed the ascendancy to Australia in the third and final Test of the Benaud-Qadir series, which is locked at 0-0.
Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc's series swinging blitz - in which they took 56/5 and 33/4 respectively - also saw new heights for Australian bowlers in Asia.
The art of Starc 🔥
#PAKvAUS https://t.co/DVpVrkDJvT
The Aussie duo registered just the second occurrence of two Australian opening bowlers taking nine wickets in a Test innings in Asia. The last time that occurred was in India in 1979 when Geoff Dymock (five wickets) and Rodney Hogg (four wickets) combined to take nine wickets between them.
The nine wickets between Starc and Cummins are the most by Australian fast bowlers in a single Test innings in Pakistan. It is also the equal-best in a Test innings in Asia, a feat that has only been achieved five times prior to this Test.
Cummins led the way with his 56/5 in the first innings, making him just the fourth Australian fast bowler to snag a five-wicket haul in a Test match in Pakistan. Graham McKenzie last achieved that in 1964 with a six-wicket haul.
ICC
The captain leading from the front 🔥
Pat Cummins claims his seventh Test five-wicket haul and has dismantled Pakistan 💥
📷 ICC
#Pakistan #Australia #PAKvAUS https://t.co/mEGMrJ6hMi
Earlier on Day 3 of the third Test, which was the 13th day of the series, all five of Australia's bowlers had a strike rate greater than 100 for the tour. Starc's meager wicket tally was equal to that of direct-hit-run-outs for the series.
However, Starc and Cummins were finally able to flatten the hosts' batting lineup and extinguish any threat of records trending in the opposite direction.
Pakistan's unwanted tail-end records
In dramatic fashion, the hosts lost their final four wickets for just 20 runs in a matter of just 40 minutes. In one of the side's worst ever batting collapses, they went from 248/4 to being bundled out for 268 in front of a home Lahore crowd.
The big wicket! This has been some collapse by Pakistan and they are in serious trouble.
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They added just four runs for the loss of their last five wickets, their fewest ever in a Test innings. Their previous worst was five runs against South Africa in 2003.
Additionally, zero runs were scored by Pakistan while losing their last four wickets, just the tenth time that has occurred in a Test innings. Strikingly, this is the second time this has occurred for Pakistan after they did the same against England in 1967 at Trent Bridge.
Overall, they scored only seven runs from No.6 to No.11.
The series is now locked at 0-0 at stumps on Day 3. With Australian openers David Warner and Usman Khawaja at the crease, Australia will be looking to build on their 134-run lead.