Australia beat Pakistan by 29 runs in first T20I

Glenn Maxwell’s powerful batting and Australia’s strong bowling performance secured a 29-run victory over Pakistan in the rain-shortened first T20I at The Gabba.

With rain reducing the match to just seven overs per side, Pakistan’s captain Mohammad Rizwan chose to bowl first.

Australia’s openers Jake Fraser-McGurk and Matthew Short started strong, scoring 16 runs in the first over.

Naseem Shah gave Pakistan their first breakthrough by dismissing Fraser-McGurk, but Maxwell came in at No. 3 and quickly turned the game in Australia’s favor with a quick 43 off 19 balls, hitting five fours and three sixes.

Tim David and Maxwell were dismissed in the penultimate over, leaving Australia at 73/4. Marcus Stoinis then hit 20 runs in the final over, helping Australia reach 93/4 in seven overs.

Abbas Afridi took two wickets for Pakistan, while Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah took one each.

In response, Pakistan struggled to keep up with the steep target. They started well with 12 runs in the first over but soon suffered a major collapse, losing top batters Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, and falling to 20/5 in just three overs. Abbas Afridi later added a quick 20 runs to Pakistan’s score, but it wasn’t enough, and they ended up at 64/9, falling short by 29 runs.

Nathan Ellis led Australia’s bowling with 3/9, while Xavier Bartlett and Adam Zampa each took two wickets. The win gives Australia a 1-0 lead in the three-match series._Agencies