So what will be remembered from this match? Babar standing tall when Pakistan needed calm. Ghazi Ghori proving he belongs at this level with a mature 65. Australia's resistance through Short and Renshaw. But above all, Arafat Minhas. A five-wicket haul on ODI debut. The first Pakistani ever to achieve that feat. Then the winning six to finish the chase. Not a bad way to introduce yourself to international cricket. Pakistan lead the series 1-0. Australia have work to do. And cricket fans have a new name to remember.
Until then, I am Dev Rajawat, signing off, along with my co-commentator, Manan Mehta, and scorer Danish Elahi. Also, a special thanks to Ajay Pal Singh for helping us out whenever needed. That’s it from our side. Thanks for joining. But cricket doesn’t sleep. Plenty is happening around the world. Switch tabs, follow the fun. Goodbye from this tab! TAKE CARE! BREATHE AND SMILE! CIAO!!!!
Most 50+ Scores for Pakistan vs Australia in ODIs:
9- Inzamam Ul Haq
8- Mohammad Yousuf
7- Javed Miandad
6- Babar Azam*
5- Imam Ul Haq
Shaheen Shah Afridi (Pakistan Captain): "(On the win) We are thankful to the Almighty. We had decided that we would bowl first. We had previously played a practice game here and the ball came on to the bat well under the lights so yeah it worked well for us today.
(On Arafat Minhas' dream debut) We all are very happy for Arafat and his family. I saw his parents taking videos of him playing today. It reminded me of my debut. I can understand how excited the family gets. Hopefully he has a long career with the team.
(On Ghazi Ghori showing maturity with the bat) Ghazi had played well against Bangladesh on debut. He had shown good signs in the practice games as well. He is part of the red-ball set up too. He plays spin really well and also handles the quick bowlers. Pakistan has this kind of talent and the future for sure is a bright one."
Josh Inglis (Australia Captain): (On Australia's total not being enough and the match situation) "Yes, I think so. We were put in to bat on a surface that offered a little bit for the spinners, and perhaps the boundaries were slightly shorter as well. I thought we made a really good fist of it in the second innings and made them work very hard to get over the line. Looking back, another 30 or 40 runs could have made the game really interesting.
(On the performance of the spinners in the second innings) I thought Tanveer Sangha and Matt Kuhnemann were outstanding. The way they varied their pace, adjusted their fields, and executed their plans was excellent. They made the opposition work hard for every run and really brought us back into the contest.
(On the confidence gained by younger players in the absence of senior players) That’s one of the positives we can take from the game. With a few of the senior players missing, it gave some of the younger guys an opportunity to step up, and I thought they responded really well, especially with the ball.
(On receiving information from Marnus Labuschagne, who has played in PSL earlier) I’ve had plenty of information from Marnus so far on this tour. To be honest, maybe a little less of that would be better."
Arafat Minhas (POTM): "(On tackling the debut nerves) I had previously said as well that pressure is always there. I am coming off a good PSL so that gave me the confidence. I have always tried to enjoy a pressure environment. Today as I made my debut, I tried to enjoy it as much as I could. That helped me tackle the pressure and it worked for me.
(His approach on a spin-friendly wicket) The basics remain the same regardless of the conditions. The camp we had in Lahore before the series has helped us a lot. We could read the conditions better and execute better as well.
(On his father watching the match from the stands) Yes, absolutely. My father is very proud today. He dreamt that I would play for Pakistan and I am sure he would have enjoyed the performance today."
Player of the Match: Arafat Minhas (5/32 and 18 Not Out)