Pakistan vs Australia toss - (Source: X.com)
On Saturday, January 31, Pakistan and Australia locked horns for the 2nd T20I at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. It is a do-or-die game for the visitors because they suffered a defeat in the curtain-raiser match.
Talking about the first T20I, Pakistan, batting first, put 160 runs on the board, courtesy of Saim Ayub. In reply, Australia tumbled for just 146 runs as Abrar Ahmed and Saim Ayub's two wicket haul helped the Men in Green start the series on a high.
PAK vs AUS 2nd T20I: Toss update
Talking about the ongoing match, Salman Ali Agha and Mitchell Marsh walked out for the coin flip. The hosts Pakistan won the toss and opted to bat first against Australia.
In the first match, Australia, who have relatively named a second-string side, handed debuts to three cricketers. But for the 2nd T20I, the Mitchell Marsh-led side have made a few changes. The skipper himself came in and Josh Inglis. Debuatant Jack Edwards has been left out of the playing XI. Also, Mahli Beardman has been left out of the playing XI by Mitchell Marsh and the Australian management.
Pakistan, on the other hand, have also made three changes as Fakhar Zaman, Shaheen Afridi, and Salman Mirza are not playing the ongoing match. Even during the toss, Salman Mirza talked about the pitch and stated that the surface will act slow, which is why the Men in Green want to put runs on the board and replicate a similar performance like the first T20I.
PAK vs AUS 2nd T20I: Playing XIs
Australia Playing XI: Mitchell Marsh (c), Travis Head, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis (wk), Matt Renshaw, Cooper Connolly, Matthew Short, Xavier Bartlett, Sean Anthony Abbott, Matthew Kuhnemann, Adam Zampa
Pakistan Playing XI : Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha (c), Babar Azam, Usman Khan (wk), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Naseem Shah, Usman Tariq, Abrar Ahmed
PAK vs AUS 2nd T20I: Captains' thoughts
Salman Ali Agha (Pakistan Captain): "We want to bat first. Looks another slow, it is going to turn. We want to put an above par total and look to defend it. I will bat at 3. Babar is playing, Fakhar is not playing today. I think they are experienced enough and they know how it takes to bat on these numbers. I am confident they will do well."
"We have 3 changes. So Fakhar Zaman, Shaheen Afridi and Salman Mirza are not playing. Faheem, Usman Tariq and Naseem are playing," he added during the toss.
Mitchell Marsh (Australia Captain): "Yeah, I think big series, important to win. We came here to win the series, today is a big day for us. Yeah, we thought the wicket slowed up a bit. There was a bit of dew later on, which might help us later in the day. There is but I always get stuck here. So myself, Josh Inglis and one other comes in, actually 4 others (chuckles)."
