Aussies wilt under Pak pace, bowled out for 88
Leeds (England), July 21: Pakistan dismissed Australia for just 88 in their first innings on the first day of the second Test at Headingley here on Wednesday.
Australia, against accurate seam bowling, collapsed to their lowest Test total since being bowled out for 76 by the West Indies at Perth in 1984.
By contrast, Pakistan were 148 for 3 when bad light stopped play with 13 overs remaining.
Pakistan’s three frontline seamers shared the wickets, with left-armer Mohammad Aamer leading the way with three for 20, including two in the first two balls after lunch, in 11 overs.
Mohammad Asif took three for 30 in 11.1 overs and Umar Gul two for 16 in nine in overcast conditions that aided movement, but not excessively.
Tim Paine, last man out, top scored with 17 — one of only three double-figure contributions in an innings where Australia failed to cope with the swinging ball.
New Pakistan captain Salman Butt, looking to lead the side to their first Test victory over Australia since 1995, then strengthened his team’s position.
Butt, who made Pakistan’s only two fifties in a 150-run first Test loss at Lord’s last week, was 38 not out and fellow left-handed opener Imran Farhat unbeaten on 20 at tea.
Australia seamers Ben Hilfenhaus and Mitchell Johnson were not as disciplined as their Pakistan counterparts and Butt cashed in with some well-struck boundaries when they strayed onto his pads or pitched well outside off-stump.
Australia captain Ricky Ponting decided to bat first after winning the toss in cloudy conditions. But Aamer and Asif removed both openers in quick succession to reduce Australia to 20 for two. Left-hander Simon Katich shuffled across his stumps in typical fashion and was trapped leg before by Aamer.
Brief scores: Australia 88 (Simon Katich 13, Marcus North 16, Tim Paine 17, Steve Smith 10, Md Aamer 3/20, Md Asif 3/30, Umar Gul 2/16, Umar Amin 1/7) vs Pakistan 133 for 1 (Salman Butt 45, Imran Farhat 43, Azhar Ali 30, Shane Watson 2/12, Ben Hilfenhaus 1/56).
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