Agha Salman won a third straight toss in Lahore and, once more, chose to bat first, looking to wrap up a clean sweep over Australia in the final T20I of the series.
“Runs on the board have worked for us, so there’s no real reason to change,” the captain said at the toss. Pakistan’s method has been straightforward: post something near 180, then let a spin-heavy attack pick apart visiting batters on dry surfaces that grip and turn.
Three tweaks freshen the home side. Fakhar Zaman returns to the top order, Khawaja Nafay takes the gloves, and Shaheen Shah Afridi offers left-arm pace after sitting out the second match. Sahibzada Farhan, Usman Khan and Usman Tariq drop out.
After being routed for 108 on Wednesday—Australia’s largest T20I defeat in 20 years—the tourists need a rapid reset with the World Cup in Sri Lanka only weeks away. Mitchell Marsh played down panic. “A bad night doesn’t make a bad team,” the skipper noted. “We’ve got enough experience to bounce back quickly.”
Australia’s XI shows four changes. Ben Dwarshuis, replacing Pat Cummins in the World Cup squad, gets his first game of the tour. Josh Philippe is in as wicketkeeper, while Marcus Stoinis and Mitchell Owen bolster the all-round department. Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Xavier Bartlett and Sean Abbott sit out.
Ex-Australia coach Darren Lehmann, on local commentary, reckoned the visitors “must rotate strike better against spin”, pointing to their 49 dot balls in the previous match.
Teams
Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha (capt), Babar Azam, Khawaja Nafay (wk), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Abrar Ahmed.
Australia: Mitchell Marsh (capt), Matthew Short, Cameron Green, Matt Renshaw, Marcus Stoinis, Josh Philippe (wk), Mitchell Owen, Cooper Connolly, Ben Dwarshuis, Matt Kuhnemann, Adam Zampa.
The first ball is scheduled for 7.30 pm local time, and another slow, turning surface is likely—exactly what both sides say they want for one last test before the World Cup.
