Mediocre bowling lets hosts bask in glory
Brisbane, Nov 6: Pakistan's bowling was reduced to mediocrity by a record breaking stand by Australia's opening batsmen Michael Slater and Greg Blewett
A. Jalil
07-Nov-1999
Brisbane, Nov 6: Pakistan's bowling was reduced to mediocrity by a
record breaking stand by Australia's opening batsmen Michael Slater
and Greg Blewett. If Australia's bowlers were made to look ordinary
the previous day when Yousuf Youhana and Inzamamul Haq were putting
together their big stand, then certainly the Australians got their own
back today.
Pakistan's bowlers struggled through two sessions of play and looked
incapable of making incisions into Australia's innings after the
opening burst from Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar. As the day
progressed the fielding also became sloppy allowing the batsmen to
take control gradually. It resulted in a wonderfully entertaining
century from Slater, the thirteenth of his Test career, as he passed
4000 Test runs and a staunch rather than spectacular innings from
Blewett which took him to his fourteenth Test fifty.
The pitch at the Gabba ground has flattened as the match has
progressed. It was only at the start of the two innings that it
appeared at its liviest. Slater was fortunate to have survived appeals
for leg before wicket to Akram in the opening over. It was somewhat
surprising that the Pakistan captain, who bowled his 12 overs with
good control and was the one bowler whom both Slater and Blewett found
difficult to get away, did not bring himself on after two
spells. Instead he persisted with Mushtaq Ahmed whose 16 overs went
for as many as 76 while Shoaib conceded 62 from 13. Mushtaq like Shane
Warne earlier, found very little turn from the pitch and both Slater
and Blewett were quick to punish anything that was not on line or
length.
As his bowlers became wayward in the face of some aggressive
stroke-play, particularly from Slater, Akram should have bowled
himself to stern Australia's run flow. Their innings now has the
foundation for a massive total and the impetus that was given earlier
in the day to Pakistan's innings by Moin Khan, in his typically
flamboyant style of batting has been lost. Moin took just 88 balls to
score 61 with 42 of those runs coming from boundaries.
It will be vital for Pakistan to get early wickets on the third day
and to ensure that the lapses in the field that took place today are
not repeated. Slater took full advantage of the chances that were not
accepted. Azhar Mahmood dropped him at mid-off on 78, off Akram, in
his second spell and another glaring let-off came from Mohammad Wasim
at second slip, off Shoaib, when Slater was on 99. It was a
straightforward catch. The batsman gratefully took the resulting
single and kissed his country's badge on the helmet in his customary
fashion.
It was apparent that Shoaib was making rather too hard an effort today
to make an impact. With his bowling action having come under question
so unfairly this week, making sensational news, he was quite
understand by out to prove a point. No doubt he will be advised to be
in a more relaxed frame of mind when play resumes tomorrow.
On being asked about facing Shoaib in view of the recent events,
Slater said: "It was important to get out there and get on top of that
early pace because we knew he was going to throw everything at us and
as expected he was very fast."
If Australia are allowed to build a huge first innings, and they are
certainly on the way to it, Pakistan's batsmen will be put under great
pressure the second time around and it is therefore imperative that
there is an early breakthrough in the Australian innings tomorrow
following by a couple of quick wickets