Former Pakistan cricketer Ramiz Raja strongly criticised Pakistan's performance after their defeat in the first Test of the series against Australia on December 17 in Perth. During the match, Nathan Lyon achieved a milestone by reaching 500 Test wickets. Shan Masood's Pakistan faced a shocking batting collapse as Australia registered a comprehensive win within four days of the Test at the Optus Stadium.
Mitchell Marsh’s determined 90-run knock and David Warner's performance in the first innings propelled Australia to a massive total of 487 runs in 113.2 overs. Despite relying heavily on former skipper Babar Azam, Pakistan could only manage a total of 271 in their first innings. Spin maestro Lyon took seven wickets with Mitchell Starc and skipper Pat Cummins. Though Warner failed to open his account in the second innings, Marsh extended his impressive run as his unbeaten 63-run knock paved the way for Australia to score 233/5 in 63.2 overs.
What Ramiz said about Pakistan’s ‘resistance menu’
In Australia's second innings in Perth, opener Usman Khawaja played a crucial innings, scoring 90 runs off 190 balls. Required to pursue a challenging target of 450 runs, Pakistan, led by Babar, collapsed and managed only 89 runs, marking another humiliating defeat for the Green Team in Test cricket.
“Intent and technique were both missing from Pak’s ‘resistance menu’. Blown away in just 31overs in the second knock was disappointing. Aussies were on another level…,” Raja said on X (formerly known as Twitter) after the Perth Test.
Lyon joins 500 club in Perth
In his first match since stepping down from the captaincy, Babar scored 21 runs off 54 balls in the first innings. However, his performance with the bat in this match was forgettable, as he was dismissed for just 14 runs in 37 balls. Lyon achieved the milestone of becoming the eighth bowler to take 500 Test wickets. The seasoned spinner claimed five wickets in the first Test for the hosts.
WTC standings: India on top after Pakistan's heavy defeat
After Australia secured a commanding 360-run victory over Pakistan, the Asian team has now dropped to the second position on the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) points table. The outcome has also propelled India to claim the top spot in the WTC standings. According to the Points Percentage System (PCT), India currently lead the WTC standings with 16 points with one win and a draw from two Tests against West Indies. On the other hand, Pakistan hold the second position with 24 points from two games in the third edition of the ICC event.
(Powered by AI)
MORE ON SPORTS TAK:
