Saim Ayub and Abrar Ahmed, two products of Karachi, stood at the heart of Pakistan’s emphatic 22-run win over Australia in the first T20I.
Pakistan’s innings had begun shakily when Sahibzada Farhan fell for a duck in the opening over, but what followed was a calm yet purposeful rebuild.
Saim Ayub, opening the batting, and captain Salman Ali Agha stitched together a crucial 74-run partnership that stabilised the innings and gave Pakistan a platform to work with.
Ayub was fluent for his 40 off 22, where he smashed three boundaries and two maximums, while Salman complemented him by taking on the spinners early.
Although Pakistan could not fully capitalise at the death, the total proved more than competitive once the bowlers took over and it was again Saim who made an immediate impact.
Trusted with the ball inside the powerplay, the left-hander struck in his very first over, removing Matthew Short, before delivering an even bigger blow in his second by dismissing the dangerous Travis Head for 23. Head had looked ominous, striking two sixes and two fours, but Saim’s consistent length forced the error.
“We knew that if we hit a good length consistently, it wouldn’t be easy for the batters to score. That was the strategy,” Saim said after the match, reflecting the clarity Pakistan’s spinners brought into the game.
At the other end, Abrar Ahmed quietly went about continuing his growing reputation as Pakistan’s go-to T20 spinner.
The Karachi off-spinner claimed two wickets of his own, matching up with an economical spell, where he just conceded 10 runs from his four overs and breaking the back of the visitors.
The duo choke Australia through the middle overs. With Mohammad Nawaz and Shadab Khan also chipping in with a wicket each.
Australia never recovered from the sustained pressure and were restricted to 146 for eight in their 20 overs.
Captain Salman Ali Agha was full of praise for his bowlers, singling out Abrar’s consistency. “Abrar has been outstanding since his debut. Since the Asia Cup, our spin bowling has been doing really well for us; they are winning us games day in and day out,” he said. While acknowledging Pakistan’s batting challenges, Salman underlined the team’s growing confidence in its spin resources a trend that bodes well as the T20 World Cup approaches.
