Pakistan vs Australia, 1st Test: Match Preview, Playing XI and broadcast details

They have been two old superpowers in the Test arena and history was in the making as Australia were set to take on Pakistan in their den in the long format after 24 years. Pat Cummins’ side will lock horns with that of Babar Azam in a three-game series kicking off in Rawalpindi on Friday, March 4, and the winners of the series will lift the Benaud-Qadir Trophy named after two legendary leg-spinners from the two nations – Richie Benaud and Abdul Qadir.

For the Australians, it will be a challenging mission, thanks to the security bubble, the threat of coronavirus which has already affected both camps and the unpredictable opponents. The Kangaroos landed in the Pakistani capital just days ahead of the first Test and was immediately taken into a strict security cover. They have got little time to get familiar with the conditions.

However, the Australians will take confidence from the fact that they won the last Test series they played in Pakistan under the captaincy of Mark Taylor and the pitch at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium might be more conducive to seam bowling than the spinners, who generally call the shots in subcontinental wickets.

Cummins conceded before the series that it would be a completely new thing for his players. “You know most international players — and conditions — but this series comes with a few more unknowns than perhaps normally, so it’s going to be interesting and challenging,” the bowler, who led his country to a dominating 4-0 victory over England in Ashes, said.

“I have a big belief in making sure our own game is in order. We must think that we are in great form since the Ashes and look at that, rather than on the opposition,” he added. Pakistan have some new young faces in their ranks and that is something that would keep the visitors guessing.

For instance, spinners Nauman Ali and Sajid Khan have replaced leg-spinner Yasir Shah and speedster Mohammad Abbas, both of whom had starred in Pakistan’s 1-0 win over Australia in the 2018 Test series which was played in the United Arab Emirates.

Azam, who is now the captain of Pakistan in all three formats and on whom the home team will bank heavily in the upcoming series, told reporters in a virtual interaction that his team was looking to give the Australians a tough time. Australia have not won an away Test series since their tour of New Zealand in 2016 and that would be one factor that the Pakistanis would look to capitalise on.

Pitch and Conditions

The surface at Rawalpindi is expected to be a balanced one with both batters and bowlers capable of exploiting the conditions. Rawalpindi has till date hosted 11 Test matches and Pakistan have won five of them. Two Pakistan-Australia games have been held in that venue and while one of them was drawn, the other one was won by Australia – their series-winning victory in 1998.
In the three Tests that have been played in Rawalpindi since Pakistan returned as hosts in 2019, a decade after the deadly terror attacks on the touring Sri Lankan national team in Lahore, fast bowlers have pocketed 52 scalps on the surface while the spinners have got only 21. It will not be surprising to see the captain winning the toss decides to bat first.

Predicted XI

Pakistan: Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Fawad Alam, Azhar Ali, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Abdullah Shafique, Iftikhar Ahmed, Naseem Shah, Imam-ul-Haq, Nauman Ali.

Australia: Pat Cummins (captain), Marnus Labuschagne, David Warner, Steve Smith, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Travis Head, Alex Carey (wicket-keeper), Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc.

Pakistan V Australia Head-to-Head

Played – 66 | Pakistan – 15 | Australia – 33 | Tied – 0| Drawn – 18

Pakistan v Australia Broadcast Details

Match Timings – 11 AM IST
TV – Sony Sports Network
Live Streaming – Sony LIV