AUS vs PAK | Big Show Maxwell roars as Australia dominate Pakistan in rain-affected encounter

ByDebayan Sinha, SportsCafe Editor

Yesterday at 5:26 PM

Australia beat Pakistan by 29 runs in the first T20I at the Gabba. The match was reduced to a seven-over game due to rain as Australia put up a brilliant 93/4, courtesy of Glenn Maxwell’s 43 off 19 while Pakistan’s chase faltered due to their poor shot selection and no substantial partnership.

‌A packed Gabba awaited the first T20I between Australia and Pakistan, but the start was delayed due to rain and intense lightning. After multiple inspections and brief stops and starts, the downpour finally ceased, allowing the grounds crew to prepare the field. The match was shortened to seven overs per side, with Pakistan winning the toss and choosing to bowl. Openers Jake Fraser-McGurk and Matthew Short gave Australia a brisk start, taking the score to 16/0 in the first over. Fraser-McGurk was then dismissed by Naseem Shah in the second over, bringing Glenn Maxwell to the crease. Maxwell, true to form, began aggressively, launching a reverse-swept four and pushing the score to 33/1 by the end of the second over. Though Haris Rauf removed Short in the third over, Maxwell continued his assault, racing to a quickfire 41 off 16 balls. Abbas Afridi eventually ended Maxwell's knock in the sixth over. After Tim David’s dismissal, Marcus Stoinis contributed a vital 21 off 7 balls, taking Australia to a solid 93/4 at the end of their innings.

Pakistan's batting began on a shaky note as opener Sahibzada Farhan fell to Spencer Johnson in the first over. The struggles continued for the visitors when Xavier Bartlett dismissed Mohammad Rizwan in the following over. With Usman Khan also departing without making an impact, Pakistan found themselves in trouble at 16/3 after just two overs. Babar Azam also fell victim to the pressure, trying to clear the boundary for a six but instead gifting his wicket away in the third over by Nathan Ellis. The Australian celebrations showed no signs of stopping as Ellis struck again in the same over, removing Irfan Khan. With Pakistan at a perilous 16/5 with half of their side back in the dugout, desperately hoped for some sort of revival. With 74 runs needed off the last four overs, all hopes rested on Haseebullah Khan and Salman Agha. However, Salman too fell short, departing in the fourth over and bringing Abbas Afridi to the crease. The momentum briefly shifted when Afridi hit a six and a four in the fifth over. With 47 runs required off the final two overs, the visitors' hopes of a comeback rested on the duo. But Nathan Ellis struck again, removing Haseebullah in the sixth over. With 41 runs needed off the last over, Australia had nearly sealed the win. Ultimately, Pakistan fell short, losing by 29 runs as Australia lead the three match series 1-0.

Maxi show!

'This is why people pay a lot of money to watch this guy bat' #AUSvPAK pic.twitter.com/Zwab5Pnw3j
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) November 14, 2024

Easy win!

Congratulations Australia 🇦🇺 for the ezzzzzz win....!!!!

Pct buahhahahahahhahahahahaha #AUSvsPAK
— BM (@BilalModi1) November 14, 2024

Oops!

Tim David kinda lineup this is for Pakistan. Nothing to say!#AUSvPAK #AUSvsPAK #PAKvAUS #PAKvsAUS
— Sharon Solomon (@BSharan_6) November 14, 2024

Nothing for today!

6 out 🤷#PAKvsAUS #AusvsPak #AUSvPAK #PAKvAUS #Cricket #BabarAzam #BabarAzam𓃵 #Pakistan #T20Cricket #ICCRankings pic.twitter.com/Imb3rBDlCj
— AD Choudhary (@adchoudhray) November 14, 2024

LOL!

David Warner trolling Pakistan 🗣:

"That's a nice shot over covers. Its a four here but 6 in pindi." 🤣🤣🤣🤣#PAKvsAUS #PAKvAUS #AUSvPAK #AUSvsPAK
— Zain Cric (@Zain_Cric) November 14, 2024

He's kinda fun!