Australia vs Pakistan Boxing Day Test Day 1: Basil Zempilas slams MCG crowd
Perth mayor Basil Zempilas has slammed the MCG’s Boxing Day crowd in a bizarre post that has reignited an Aussie cricket war.
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Pakistan overcame a rain delay and a slow start with the ball to take the fight to Australia on Day 1 of the Boxing Day Test.
The tourists won the toss and elected to bowl on a tricky MCG surface, but Australia’s openers put on 90 for the first wicket.
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David Warner was given a life when Abdullah Shafique dropped a sitter at slip, but Warner was out for 38 just before lunch when he played a false shot to spinner Salman Ali Agha.
Khawaja was dismissed for 42 before Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne dug in through a dour period in which the Aussies didn’t score a boundary for 150 balls and only hit 14 fours for the day.
Pakistan great Waqar Younis said on Channel 7: “I’ve never seen Australia play like this in the past. That’s unlike Australia.”
Smith was out late in the day, with Labuschagne 44 not out and Travis Head unbeaten on nine as Australia reached stumps 3/198 from 66 overs.
6.45pm - Perth mayor takes shot at MCG crowd
A week after his city was criticised for not turning up for the first Test of the summer, Perth mayor Basil Zempilas has taken aim at the Boxing Day crowd in Melbourne.
The official crowd figure for the opening day of the second Test at the MCG was 62,167, the second highest opening day crowd for a Test between Australia and Pakistan at the venue.
It’s also more than the combined attendance 59,125 across the four days of action in Perth.
More fans attended the Perth Scorchers’ first home BBL match of the season (28,494) than any day of the Perth Test (highest crowd on Day 2, 17,666).
But Zempilas thought it was a poor Boxing Day crowd, despite the standard of the opponent and wet weather affecting Melbourne.
He tweeted: “Hmmmm. What’s their excuse? Not like you can go to the beach?”
Let’s just say Zempilas’ tweet didn’t go down too well.
6News’ Leonardo Puglisi replied: “60K+ showed up when we all knew it would be raining - more than the entire 4 day Perth test.”
One person said: “More people turned up to the MCG with heavy rain forecast than can fit in to Optus Stadium. Also more people at Day 1 that attended the entire four days of the Perth test.”
Another commented: “That Perth chip on your shoulder is really weighing you down Basil.”
There's been two days of news coverage about how the weather would be atrocious and then it rained for 1/3 of the days play and they *STILL* got 60k+
— Mark Gottlieb (@MarkGottlieb) December 26, 2023
Yeah... I reckon Melbournians did alright today. https://t.co/mJAP4u2NlM
6.31pm - Smith out for 26
Steve Smith’s patchy form has continued as he was dismissed for 26 off 75 balls late on Day 2.
Soon after surviving an LBW review, Smith feathered through an edge off Aamir Jamal through to the keeper.
Smith has made scores of 31, 45 and 26 in the series against Pakistan so far. He hasn’t scored a Test century since the second Ashes Test at Lord’s.
Bit of a barren spell for Steve Smith by his lofty standards.
— Daniel Garb (@DanielGarb) December 26, 2023
Plenty of starts but only two scores above 50 in his last ten Test innings and no centuries. #AUSvPAK
By Smith’s lofty standards, he looks below his best and continues to tinker with his bat grip and stance on the crease.
“That is a huge amount of his hand under the bottom of his handle,” Ricky Ponting said on Channel 7.
6pm - DRS saves Smith’s bacon
Steve Smith was almost dismissed LBW after a quicker ball from Shaheen Afridi smacked him on the pads. The ball completely beat Smith for pace and the Pakistanis thought it was plumb. The umpire’s finger went up but Smith wasn’t convinced, asking for a review.
Ball tracking showed the ball was a little too short and the delivery would have sailed over the top of the bails.
5.40pm - Aussies break boundary drought
It’s hard yakka out in the middle with the ball dipping around. Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne have toughed out the challenging period of play, scoring at a snail’s pace after play resumed.
Smith finally pierced the field and whipped Hasan Ali away on the leg side for four after the pair had spent a whopping 150 balls without a boundary.
Labuschagne followed suit two overs later with his first sign of real aggression - a cut shot behind point for four off Aamer Jamal.
4.50pm - Play to resume in 20 minutes
The rain has stopped and we have a 5.10pm start time if the clouds stay away. There are 26 overs left in the day, with play being pushed back to 7pm if weather permits.
3.50pm - Ground staff give MCG crowd hope
The large covers have been pulled off, injecting some life into the remaining crowd members toughing it out on this bleak Melbourne day.
Boxing Day might make a revival yet.
ITS HAPPENING!
— Lachy (@Lachy_Steele) December 26, 2023
#AUSvPAKpic.twitter.com/ppTrudmzRK
2.24pm - Rain delay
The rain threatened to roll over Melbourne all day and finally came at around 2.20pm local time. The lights had been turned on as dark clouds coated the MCG. Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne did well to fight through the tough period and leave Australia at two down.
The Bureau of Meteorology has sent out a severe thunderstorm warning for the city with damaging winds and heavy rainfall predicted. Flash flooding was detected near Melbourne Airport, Tullamarine and the area west of Sunbury, with locals being told to stay indoors if possible.
It is raining heavily in Melbourne, seems quite difficult to have play anymore 🥲 #AUSvPAKpic.twitter.com/8fmDMoPZMt
— Junaid (@JunaidTvveets) December 26, 2023
1.35pm - Khawaja falls for 42
Usman Khawaja couldn’t get going after the lunch break and eventually fished at one outside off, gifting a regulation catch to Agha Salman in the slips.
Seamer Hasan Ali was the bowler and Usman was on his way for 42 off 101 deliveries.
Steve Smith has now joined Marnus Labuschagne at the crease. Both batsmen are struggling a bit for runs, so this session could get interesting before the rain rolls over the MCG.
12.30pm - Warner out for 38 at lunch
David Warner looked like he was getting ready for another big knock but eventually holed out to off-spinner Agha Salman in his second over.
He attempted to muscle the ball through the off side but got beaten for bounce and edged an easy catch to Babar Azam at first slip.
Ricky Ponting said Pakistan had squeezed a bit of luck out of the final session by racing through to get another over in.
“It’s right on the stroke of 12:30 as well. I was watching David Warner in the last over, he actually had his gloves off at the non-strikers end and that generally means to me that someone has switched off for the session,” Ponting said.
“They made it around, they got round in time, they got time for another over in, this is the first ball of the over, it’s a nothing ball, it’s wide it’s a good catch. They go quick when you’re there at the first slip to the spin, well taken by Babar Azam.
“The long-awaited breakthrough for Pakistan comes.”
“It was a horrible shot. A nothing shot,” Mark Waugh said.
12pm - Warner and Khawaja dig in
David Warner and Usman Khawaja have done the hard yards against Pakistan’s pace attack throughout the first session. The opening pair fended off some deadly swing early on but were able to survive and build a 70 partnership without loss before the lunch break.
Warner started opening his hands up more towards the end of the session, making a statement for what’s to come with a few aggressive shots off Shaheen Afridi for four.
Khawaja has looked solid up the other end, getting a few pull shots away to the fence on his way13 to 33.
10.43am - Pakistan put down a sitter
David Warner has been given a life after edging a regulation slips catch off Shaheen Afridi. Conditions have suited the bowlers so far and the ball has been swinging and seaming past the Aussie openers for half an hour.
There was talk from the commentary team before the first ball about how crucial Pakistan’s fielding will be in the first session but unfortunately for the visitors, Abdullah Shafique dropped one of the easiest catches of the year.
“You’ve got to catch the ball, where’s his eye line?” Ian Smith said. “It looks like a guy who’s fielding for in the slips for the first time.”
“That was a perfect height. Ample time. The hands didn’t even touch the ball. Completely missed it. Straight into his stomach,” Wasim Akram said.
“As easy as it gets. If you’re not going to catch these, you’re going to be in trouble.”
David Warner gets a life on two! Shaheen Afridi gets the ball swinging and Abdullah Shafique puts it down at first slip #AUSvPAKpic.twitter.com/EJc4AptxJk
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) December 25, 2023
“It’s impossible to drop those for an international player,” Justin Langer said on Channel Seven.
“That’s as easy a catch that you’ll ever see in Test cricket. You’re right, Pakistan – I said it before the Test Series started, I said it before this Test – if Pakistan have got any chance of fighting back in this series, they must field better than they did.
“That’s an impossible catch to drop. While he’ll feel sick about it, it’s not acceptable at international level.”
10am - Cricket great predicts Boxing Day carnage
Win the toss and bowl. That’s the thoughts of cricket great Kerry O’Keeffe after inspecting the pitch and with the clouds hanging overhead.
“I think both teams will (want to) bowl,” O’Keeffe said. “I think Pat Cummins knows this pitch has been under cover for a couple days, there’s cloud cover, there’s rain expected. They could have a real burst early.”
He added: “I think Pakistan have to roll the dice. They have to bowl Australia out for under 200 and control the game.
“This is their day.”
Pakistan captain Shan Masood won the toss and took that advice under his cap as he elected to bowl first.
8:30am – Ominous clouds loom over Boxing Day Test
It’s not great signs overhead for cricket fans.
Dark clouds have stuck in the sky for several days now and it’s looking like more of the same for the opening day of play in Melbourne.
The Bureau of Meterology are forecasting an 80 per cent chance of between one and 10mm of rain in the Melbourne area.
The forecast reads: “High chance of showers, most likely during the afternoon and evening. Thunderstorms likely, mainly during the afternoon and evening and possibly severe. Winds south-easterly 20 to 30 km/h.”
The forecast says that rain could start developing from 11am, however, it’s more likely to hit Melbourne from 2pm.
There is a 50 per cent chance of rain between 2pm and 8pm on day one.
Things dramatically improve, however, after day one, improving the chances of a result.
Only 0-2mm of rain is forecast for day two, while there is unlikely to be rain on any other day of the Test.
7am – Khawaja exposes ICC’s ‘double standards’
Usman Khawaja has delivered the latest shot in his feud with cricket’s governing body.
The Aussie opener took to Instagram on Christmas Day to expose the farcical double standards after he was blocked from playing the Boxing Day Test with a dove on his bat and shoes.
Taking to Instagram on Sunday night, Khawaja uploaded a reel with Kanye West’s ‘Can’t Tell Me Nothing’ in the background as images of cricketer’s with similar messages on their bats popped up.
“Merry Christmas everybody. Sometimes you just gotta laugh. Cya at Boxing Day! #inconsistent #doublestandards,” he wrote, with a face palm emoji.
Read more here.
TEAMS
Australia XI: David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Mitch Marsh, Alex Carey, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins (capt), Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood
Pakistan XI: Imam-Ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali, Mir Hamza, Aamir Jamal
Originally published as Australia vs Pakistan Boxing Day Test Day 1: Basil Zempilas slams MCG crowd
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