Australia’s Spencer Johnson appeals unsuccessfully for the wicket of Pakistan’s Irfan Khan during the T20 international cricket match between Australia and Pakistan in Sydney, Australia, Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
Fast bowler Spencer Johnson grabbed a career-best 5-26 and propelled Australia to a 13-run win over Pakistan as the home team clinched the three-match T20 series with a game to spare on Saturday. Johnson sliced through the top order and Pakistan crumbled to 134 all out in the final over that gave Australia a decisive 2-0 lead in Josh Inglis’ first series as skipper.
Usman Khan made a fighting 52 and Irfan Khan scored unbeaten 37 but the visitors otherwise struggled with Johnson’s pace on a bouncy wicket with captain Mohammad Rizwan (16) the only other batter to cross the double-figure mark.
Australia, beaten by Pakistan 2-1 in the preceding ODI series, will eye a sweep Monday at Hobart.
The home team couldn’t capitalize on a whirlwind start and ended up at 147-9 after Inglis won the toss and elected to bat. Fast bowler Haris Rauf put the brakes on Australia’s rapid start with 4-22 and Abbas Afridi bowled well in the death overs to finish with 3-17.
Matthew Short (32) and Jake Fraser-McGurk (20) posted Australia’s fastest-ever 50 in T20s off 20 balls with both Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah going for plenty of runs inside the power play.
Pakistan was sloppy in the field with at least four dropped catches. Fraser-McGurk was dropped by Naseem at third man in Afridi’s expensive first over which went for 21 and Shah conceded 16 in his first over.
Haris struck twice in his first over when Fraser-McGurk couldn’t clear Salman Ali Agha at cover and Sufiyan Muqeem, playing his first T20 since making his debut at the Asian Games last year, took a splendid catch at point to dismiss Inglis for zero.
Abbas Afridi then ended Short’s 17-ball knock with a brilliant slower ball to knock back the stumps as Australia slipped to 61-3 in six overs.
Marcus Stoinis (14) was also twice dropped on 0 and 6 before he played a reverse sweep to Muqeem’s left-arm spin straight to deep point and Glenn Maxwell, whose 43 had earned Australia a 29-run win Thursday, holed out to deep mid-wicket after scoring a 20-ball 21.
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