Pakistan win toss, opt to bowl first in crucial second ODI against Australia

ADELAIDE: Pakistan won the toss and elected to bowl first against Australia in the second ODI of the three-match series at Adelaide Oval on Friday.

Earlier on Monday, Australia beat Pakistan by two wickets in a nail-biting fixture in the first ODI at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).

Chasing a modest 204-run target set out by the Green Shirts, the Kangaroos had to fight their way against the Pakistani bowling unit to secure a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series.

The hosts had a shaky start to the pursuit as their openers Jake Fraser-McGurk and Matthew Short perished inside four overs with just 28 runs on the board.

But, a solid 85-run partnership between Steve Smith and Josh Inglis put Australia in a dominant position.

For Friday's match, Australia's Josh Hazlewood returned to the field while Pakistan's team remained unchanged.

Pakistan’s new leadership failed to turn the fortunes of the former champions as the Mohammad Rizwan-led side succumbed to a gut-wrenching two-wicket defeat in the first ODI against Australia.

The visitors fought valiantly but a gutsy knock under pressure by skipper Pat Cummins steered the six-time champions to a hard-fought victory.

Playing XIs

Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (c), Salman Ali Agha (vc), Abdullah Shafique, Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain.

Australia: Matt Short, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Steve Smith, Josh Inglis (wk), Marnus Labuschagne, Aaron Hardie, Glenn Maxwell, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa.