Pakistan Vs Australia, 1st ODI: Arafat Minhas' Five-Wicket Haul Drive Green Shirts To Victory In Series Opener

Pakistan marked their 1,000th One Day International in historic fashion, securing a clinical five-wicket victory over Australia in the opening match of the series at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.

Also Read: Pakistan vs Australia 1st ODI Highlights

Opting to bowl first on a dry, spin-conducive surface, Pakistan’s decision proved immediately fruitful. Debutant Arafat Minhas delivered a sensational performance, dismantling the Australian batting lineup with a masterful spell of leg-spin.

Minhas became the first Pakistani bowler to claim a five-wicket haul on his ODI debut, finishing with remarkable figures of 5-32. Supported by Abrar Ahmed (2-44), the Pakistani spinners throttled the tourists, who could only manage a total of 200 all out in 44.1 overs.

Despite a spirited resistance from Matthew Renshaw, who top-scored with a 63-ball 61, and Matthew Short’s 55, the Australians struggled to handle the consistent pressure applied by the home side’s spin attack.

Chasing 201 for the win, Pakistan faced early jitters but found stability through a composed partnership between Babar Azam and Muhammad Ghazi Ghori. Babar anchored the chase with a well-constructed 69 off 94 balls, while Ghori contributed a solid 65.

Although Nathan Ellis provided a glimmer of hope for Australia with two wickets, the target never truly threatened the hosts. Arafat Minhas capped off his dream debut by hitting the winning runs, steering Pakistan to 202-5 with 45 balls to spare

The victory gives Shaheen Shah Afridi’s men a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. The two sides now head to Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium for the second ODI on June 2, where Australia will look to bounce back and keep their series hopes alive

Pakistan vs Australia, 1st ODI: Toss Update

Pakistan captain Shaheen Shah Afridi won the toss and opted to bowl first.

Shaheen Shah Afridi (PAK): “We will bowl first. Pitch looks good, and we will try to restrict them. Very happy to be captaining the 1,000th game for Pakistan. We have one debutant (Arafat Mihas).”

Josh Inglis (AUS): “It’s quite dry, so we’ll assess as quick as we possibly can and hopefully put a good total on board. I think it’s just the squad that we’ve got together at the moment. We sort of thought that we’d get these conditions again after those T20s, and it looks like we’ve got something similar. Oliver Peake will make his debut today.”

Pakistan vs Australia, 1st ODI: Playing XIs

Pakistan: Sahibzada Farhan, Maaz Sadaqat, Babar Azam, Ghazi Ghori (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Abdul Samad, Shadab Khan, Arafat Minhas, Shaheen Shah Afridi (c), Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed.

Australia: Matthew Short, Alex Carey, Josh Inglis (wk) (c), Marnus Labuschagne, Cameron Green, Matt Renshaw, Oliver Peake, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Billy Stanlake, Matthew Kuhnemann.

Pakistan vs Australia, 1st ODI: Live Streaming Details