Mitchell Starc and Peter Siddle name Australia's biggest threat in the Pakistan lineup

Australia are scheduled to play a couple of Tests followed by a three-match T20I series against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The red-ball fixtures get underway with the first Test scheduled to take place from October 7 at Dubai International Cricket Stadium. The Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi is the host for the second encounter, starting October 16.

In the meantime, the Australian team is busy churning out tactics to thump Sarfraz Ahmed’s men. In a bid to emerge victorious, their fast-bowlers earmarked Pakistani top-order batsman Azhar Ali as a prime threat. Left-arm speedster Mitchell Starc, who was out of competitive cricket from the end of March, said that Azhar’s wicket will be a prized one for them in the upcoming Test series.

He’s one of the leaders in that side now

“They’ve got a quality batting line-up, and on some really flat wickets their whole middle-order’s going to be a really good battle. I think someone like Azhar Ali, who scored a fair few runs against us in Australia last time they were here, he’d be a big one at the top of the order for them.

“He can bat long periods of time, he’s not too fazed about being tied down. So I think if we can get him early and get their middle-order in against a newer, harder ball, then that’s a good starting point,” Starc was quoted as saying in Sport 360.

Right-arm seamer Peter Siddle, who made a comeback to the Test squad after a gap of almost two years, echoed Starc’s words and remarked that Tim Paine’s men would dearly love to get rid of the Lahore-born batsman at the earliest.

“The key wicket for them is always going to be Azhar Ali. He’s one of the leaders in that side now. I think (Azhar) is going to be the big wicket, but in that time these young guys have come about, and they play some exciting cricket, so we’ve got to be on our toes and prepared,” Siddle mentioned.

The Pakistan batsman recently ended his stint for Somerset in the English County Championship. The 33-year-old played seven matches in which he managed 402 runs at an average of 33.50. His top score of 89 came against Yorkshire in Leeds.

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