Australia crash into the Semis as Misbah-Afridi retire

Australia crash into the Semis as Misbah-Afridi retire: The hosts Australia were challenged by Pakistan in the 3^rd Quarter-Final. The winner will meet India in the Semi-Final. Unchanged Pakistan won the toss and decided to bat first. The openers, who had put up a century stand in the last match, didn’t perform up to expectations and left Pakistan wondering at 24/2. Misbah-ul-Haq again and Haris Sohail took Pakistan to 97/2 until Josh Hazelwood and Glenn Maxwell teamed up to dismiss them at 213.

Pakistani bowlers really looked to dig into the longer Australian batting line-up at 59/3 but Steve Smith and Shane Watson joined hands to drive Australia safely into the Semis with a 6 wicket win. Wahab Riaz was the only bowler who created any sorts of trouble for the opposition.

Here are some of the stats highlights from the game:

A Consistent Influence – Misbah-ul-Haq captained Pakistan for the 87th time in ODIs in this match, the joint-third most with Inzamam-ul-Haq. Only Imran Khan (139 games) and Wasim Akram (109 games) have captained more times.

The 3000 Club – Misbah-ul-Haq (3003 in 83 innings) has become only the 2^nd Pakistani to score 3K ODI runs as Captain. Other: Imran Khan (3247 in 122 innings)

Tuk Tuk? – Misbah-ul-Haq is the 4^th Fastest (83 innings) Batsman to reach 3000 ODI runs as Captain; easily the Fastest for any Pakistan Captain and 3^rd Fastest for an Asian Captain.

Misbah-SIXbah – 7 SIXES for Misbah-ul-Haq in this World Cup – the most by a Pakistan Captain in a single WC, beating Wasim Akram (6 in 1999).

Boom Boom Afridi – Shahid Afridi 12 SIXES in WC matches, the most by a Pakistani player in World Cup history, beating Wasim Akram (11 sixes).

The Bucket Hands of Finch – Aaron Finch is 3rd Australian player to take 3 catches as a fielder in a WC game. Others: Ricky Ponting vs Bangladesh in 1999, Alan Border vs Zimbabwe in 1992.

The Destructive Starc – Mitchell Starc (18 scalps) has now become the ‘Leading Wicket Taker’ in this edition of the World Cup.

Catching Practice – Today was the 6th time in World Cup History that all 10 batsmen were dismissed caught, 4^th time in this world cup. Pakistan suffered this fate three times out of the four.

Not a Rare Entry – This is the 7^th time Australia will be playing World Cup Semi-Final, most for any team. Pakistan has played in 6 before.

Hard to Beat – This is Australia’s 12th consecutive win against Pakistan across all three international formats while playing at home.

Not a Big Innings Player – Misbah-ul-Haq has finished his ODI career with 41 half-centuries and ZERO hundreds; easily the most for any player without converting one into three figures.

A Near Miss – Shahid Afridi 8064 runs and 395 wickets missed on 5 wickets to become the only ODI player with a double of 8000+ runs and 400+ wickets.

No Farewell – This match was the last time Shahid Afridi and Misbah-ul-Haq were playing an ODI game.