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Pakistan are in driver’s seat with after posting a mammoth first innings total in the first Test of the three-Test series at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi. After opener Imam-ul-Haq’s century on Day 1, Azhar Ali scored 185 to help the hosts post 476/4 on the board before skipper Babar decided to declare the innings.
Starting the day at 245/1, opener Imam added 25 more runs to his score before losing his wicket to Australia skipper Pat Cummins. On the other end, Ali started the day with 64 runs to his name. The former Pakistan skipper went on to score his 19th Test century.
Skipper Babar Azam played himself in as well. However, his innings came to an end when he tried to take on Marnus Labuschagne's arm. Labuschagne hit the stumps and sent Azam back to the pavillion for a score of 36.
Ali continued to dominate Australian bowlers but his innings came to an abrupt end. Ali tried a reverse sweep off part-timer Labuschagne and ended up handing an easy catch to Cameron Green. The 37-year-old missed a chance to score a double century. He faced a total of 361 deliveries to score his 185. His innings included 15 fours and three sixes.
After Ali's wicket, wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan and Iftikhar Ahmed ensured that no more wickets fall in the last session. At 476/4, Azam decided to declare hosts' first innings. Only three Australian bowlers managed to get a wicket whereas strike bowlers Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood remained wicketless
The plan to take early wickets in the last half an hour of third session did not go as expected. Bad light stopped play as only one over could be bowled.
Right-arm off-spinner Sajid Khan bowled the first over and conceded five runs from it.
On Day 3 of the opening Test of the series, Australia would like to score big and reduce the deficit of runs. On the other hand, Pakistan will look for early wickets to prevent the Test from heading towards a draw on a pitch that has not helped pacers.
