Headline: New Challenges as Australia-Pakistan Test Series Kicks Off
Pakistan captain Shan Masood says we need to forget about the toss and focus on bowling well.
The Test series between Pakistan and Australia starts today. Australian captain Pat Cummins won the toss and chose for Pakistan to bat first at Perth Stadium on Thursday.
In what’s likely to be his last Test series, Australian power-hitter David Warner will be feeling the pressure to score runs and secure his spot on the challenging and bouncy pitch.
We’ll be watching to see if Usman Khawaja, the opening partner, wears shoes with messages of support for people in Gaza, despite being told it goes against ICC rules.
The only change in the Australian team from their last Test against England in July at the Oval is the comeback of the fit Nathan Lyon, replacing Todd Murphy.
Lyon has taken 496 wickets in Test matches and is very close to becoming one of only eight bowlers to reach the 500 mark.
Cummins said, We play well here and have a good record. The Australian ground has speed and bounce.
The new captain of Pakistan, Shan Masood, included two new players in his team. He added pacemen Aamer Jamal and Khurram Shahzad to the bowling attack led by Shaheen Shah Afridi. However, they don’t have a specialist spinner.
Pakistan has not done well in Australia, losing 14 consecutive Tests, with their last victory dating back to 1995.
Masood mentioned, “We also wanted to take our turn to bat.”
Forget about the toss and focus on delivering a strong bowling performance.
Teams
Australia
David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins (capt), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood
Pakistan
Shan Masood (capt), Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Aamer Jamal, Khurram Shahzad
