Sports

PAK Vs AUS, 2nd Test, Day 2: Alex Carey Misses Century, Australia Post 505/8 At Stumps

Usman Khawaja resumed his century knock to score 160, while Alex Carey also contributﷺed with a 93-run innings on Day 2.

Australia's Alex Carey plays a shot on second day of the second Test match against Pakistan.
info_icon

Australia's lower-order𓆉, led by Alex Carey's 93, blunted the Pakistan bowling attack to reach 505-8 on the second day of th🍃e second test on Sunday.

Carey ওmissed out on a deserving century when🌱 he was clean bowled attempting an ambitious slog sweep against Pakistan skipper Babar Azam's part-time off spin late on.

Carey and Mitchell Starc, who was unbeaten on 28, nearly played out the entire last session as they put on 98 run🔯s on a slow wicket to the frustration of Pakistan's bowlers.

“You want to make those triple figures (and) the way the game's going, it was quite an important knock in the end,” Carey told host broadca𝓀sters after batting for just over three hours and hitting seven fours and two sixes in his 159-ba𒁃ll effort. 

“It's great to have 500 runs on the board. Hopefully the pitch starts to deteriorate tomorrow and we ca⭕n create those 20 chancesও.” 

Starc joined Carey at the stroke of tea after Usman Khawaja played a marathon knock in the country of his birth🌞 and finally fell midway into the second session. Khawaja hit 160 in nine hours a🥀nd 12 minutes before Australia continued to wore down the Pakistan bowlers for 180 overs spanning two days.

It was Australia's greatest number of overs batted in a test innin🍨gs in Asia in 14 years, surpassing its 179.3 overs against India at Delhi in 2008 when it was bowled out for 577 runඣs.

An occasional turn fo𒀰r spinners off a flat track gave Pakistan Khawaja's wicket when off-spinner Sajid Khan (2-1🐼51) hit the top of the stump off a ball that drifted away enough from the left-hander.

Carey and Starc dominated Pakistan with their near-century stand before Bab🐻ar broke through to end another tough day in the field for 🐎the home side.

Starc gave a chance on 3 but left-arm spinner Nauman Ali (1-115) couldn't hold onto a retur🃏n catch over his head early in the last session that was dominated by the tourists. 

Resuming 🥀on an overnight 127, Khawaja defied Pakistan pace and spin before he was finally undone by Sajid while attempting a defensive shot off his back foot.

Khawaja raised✅ his bat to acknowledge the cheers of the crowd, who chanted “Khaw🔜aja, Khawaja” as he left the field after his century in the city that was once home to his family.

Khawaja scored just two more boundaries on Sunday to add to the 13 on day one, but tired the Pakistan bowl🅠ers through his sedate knock that came off 329 deliveries. 

Sajid picked up both his wickets in the most productive middle sess💮ion for Pakistan with left-arm Nauman also clean bowling Cameroon Green (28) in the last over before the break to get his first wicket.

Sajid earlier had Travis Head (23) lbw off a fuller delivery that didn't spin enough as the batsman tried tܫo play across the line and was struck low on the front pad.

Earlier, Khawaja added 28 to his🅘 overnight score in the 𒁏first session as Australia added a further 81 for the loss of only nightwatchman Nathan Lyon's (38) wicket after it resumed on an overnight 251-3.

Fast 🎶bowlers Shaheen Afridi (0-85) and Hasan Ali (1-67) couldn't get any lateral movement with the second new ball that was only 10 overs old and spinners Sajid and Nauman also couldn't get t🌌he better of the patient Khawaja.

Lyon defied Pakistan for an hour and 15 minutes but Pakistan had chances to break the stand. The home team called for a television referral against Lyon in the day's third over bowled by Hasan Ali but the television replays suggested the ball could ha🏅ve missed the leg stump.

Faheem Ashraf (2-55), who didn't bowl in the last session, then dropped a one-han✅ded catch off his own bowling when Lyon had reached 31 before the right-arm seamer finally broke the partnership when he knocked back Lyon's middle stump.

Australia's first test in Pakistan𝓰 since 1998 ended in a draw in Rawalpindi where the lifeless pitch was rated as b﷽elow average by the ICC.

“The weather is quite hot as compared to Rawalpindi and the cracks (in th🐻e pitc൩h) will open up," Ashraf said. “We could see a result in this test match."