Pakistan and Australia will lock horns in the second ODI of the series at Oval on 8th November
Match Preview:
This match will provide Pakistan with the last chance of levelling the series after they came close to beating Australia in the first ODI of the series. Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf were exceptional as the short-pitched tactics were helpful in sending Australia batters back to the hut and almost defended a total of 203.
Mohammad Rizwan was denied the ideal start to his captaincy tenure but his side gave it all in the field especially Irfan Khan Niazi who took blinders to dispatch Inglish and a stunning catch to finish the building knock of Marnus.
Although Pakistani bowlers bowled nicely, their batting unit needed to act together. For once it was like Babar Azam was back, he played a smooth knock before getting dismissed by Adam Zampa. Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha need to play long-impactful knocks to cover up the middle order and fill up the gap of power hitter in the lineup.
Talking about Australia, they were not up to their best in the first ODI but the captain Cummins performed with the bat and bowl to make sure his team crossed the winning line. Marnus and Smith are yet to find their form and the openers aren’t looking settled.
It will be the last game for the Test players like Pat Cummins, Steven Smith, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc and Marnus Labuschagne before the first Test against India.
From Pakistan all eyes will be on Babar Azam how he revived his form and performed to make sure his team finally win against Australia while from the home side, Matt Short will look to make his mark in the absence of Travis Head. The plus point is he will be playing on the ground which suits him well.
Playing XI:
Australia (possible): 1 Matt Short, 2 Jake Fraser-McGurk, 3 Steven Smith, 4 Josh Inglis (wk), 5 Marnus Labuschagne, 6 Glenn Maxwell, 7 Aaron Hardie, 8 Pat Cummins (capt), 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh Hazlewood
Pakistan (possible): 1 Saim Ayub, 2 Abdullah Shafique, 3 Babar Azam, 4 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 5 Kamran Ghulam, 6 Salman Ali Agha, 7 Irfan Khan, 8 Shaheen Shah Afridi, 9 Naseem Shah, 10 Haris Rauf, 11 Mohammad Hasnain
Pitch and weather report:
Although Oval is famous for batting paradise, it is still not an easy ground to bat on as a low-scoring game was seen in the Sheffield Shield match between South Australia and Victoria that finished earlier in the week. About the weather, rain is expected on Friday morning but play should be unaffected with sunny conditions expected throughout the afternoon.
Head-to-head record:
Pakistan and Australia have played each other in 109 ODI matches, with Australia winning 71 of these games.
Predictions:
Australia are favourite to win the game with Josh Hazlewood returning it will give his team a much-needed boast.
Where to Watch:
Australia: Kayo Sports
Pakistan: Tapmad
India: Star Sports 1
