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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
Sport
Jonathan Howcroft (earlier) and Scott Heinrich (later)

Australia v Pakistan: second Test, day three – as it happened

Josh Hazlewood
Josh Hazlewood celebrates the first wicket of Pakistan’s second innings as Australia pushed for victory on day three of the second Test. Photograph: Scott Barbour/AAP

Summary

A day of graft but little progress from Pakistan, who did well to reach 302 in their first innings (from 89-6 at one stage) but not well enough to avert the follow-on. That the tourists got so far as they did was down to two, familiar figures: Yasir Shah and Babar Azam. Babar fell agonisingly short of another Test century but Yasir finally got his first Test fifty, and then kept going to rack up triple figures. Their efforts kept Australia in the field longer than they would have liked, but Tim Paine still made Pakistan bat again. And, among several rain breaks, Australia’s pace attack did the business to reduce the visitors to 39-3 when stumps was taken early, vindicating the decision of their skipper. Still needing another 248 runs just to make Australia bat again, Pakistan will hope for two days of solid rain. Thanks for your company. See you tomorrow.

Stumps - Pakistan 39-3 in their second innings (trail Australia by 248 runs)

Precipitation wins in the end, as it always does, and that is all for this third day’s play. Advantage remains with Australia.

Rain stopped play!

This shower looks a bit more menacing. The heavy covers are on. Pakistan’s rain dance is working.

17th over: Pakistan 39-3 (Shan 14, Asad 8) Cummins continues, with Asad in his sights. The batsman is up to the task but Cummins can’t get through his over before we have yet another rain delay.

16th over: Pakistan 39-3 (Shan 14, Asad 8) Hazlewood finishes his latest interrupted over, sending down three dot balls to Shan.

Play is set to resume at 8.55pm local time, which is barely minutes away. Good good.

Rain stopped play!

Not sure how long this delay will last. Though thicker, this downfall doesn’t look set in. Trailing by 248 runs, Pakistan will hope for monsoons.

See below for a lovely shot from Babar. Before he got out. It’s been all or nothing this tour from Babar, with two big scores and two misses. Does that make him mercurial?

16th over: Pakistan 39-3 (Shan 14, Asad 8) Hazlewood manages three balls of his eighth over before the umpires make the call and order players off the ground. Tim Paine isn’t happy. He wants to stay out there, as you would if you were the Australia captain. But the showers are getting heavier. Rain stops play.

15th over: Pakistan 38-3 (Shan 14, Asad 7) Nice off drive by Asad earns three and gives Michael Neser, Australia’s substitute fielder, something to do. Shan then steers the ball between point and gully for four, clearly getting the taste of this boundary lark. And a wonderful response from Cummins, who cuts one away from the left hander and beats the bat. A hurriedly run two then makes it nine from the over. The misty rain looks to be getting thicker.

14th over: Pakistan 29-3 (Shan 8, Asad 4) Short and then full and then short again from Hazlewood, but Shan is the picture of watchfulness until he throws caution to the wind and pulls for his first boundary. Forty-seven deliveries in the making, it was worth the wait. There’s a spot or two of rain around and it’s time for drinks.

Josh Hazlewood (centre)
Josh Hazlewood of Australia celebrates the dismissal of Babar Azam during day three of the second Test Match at Adelaide Oval. Photograph: Scott Barbour/AAP

Updated

13th over: Pakistan 25-3 (Shan 4, Asad 4) Good areas from Cummins to Asad and that’s two maidens on the bounce. Pakistan trail by 262 runs.

12th over: Pakistan 25-3 (Shan 4, Asad 4) Failed review! Paine is convinced Shan has tickled one around his legs, despite the umpire’s call of not out. The skipper and keeper confers with nobody and sends the decision straight upstairs. Sorry, Tim, no bat on that one. That makes it two successful reviews and 20 unsuccessful reviews under Paine’s watch. Hazlewood collects Shan on the helmet last ball, with Paine taking the ‘catch’. A tepid appeal follows but there’s no review this time. New helmet for the batsman.

11th over: Pakistan 25-3 (Shan 4, Asad 4) Cummins continues to work on Shan’s off stump and the over is highlighted by an absolute belter that pitches on middle, seams away and misses both outside edge and the stumps. Really, that ball was too good to take a wicket. Asad takes strike last ball of the over and gets off the mark with a boundary as Cummins strays down leg. Both batsmen are on four - Shan has faced 36 balls, Asad just the one.

WICKET! Babar c Paine b Hazlewood 8 (Pakistan 20-3)

10th over: Pakistan 20-3 (Shan 3) Hazlewood gets one to nip back sharply to Babar, but it started too far outside off to be a threat. He then strays onto Babar’s pads and is worked through midwicket for two.

But Hazlewood soon gets his man as Babar prods at one just outside off, and there’s enough lift on the ball to catch the edge en route to the keeper. A miss for Babar and not at all what Pakistan were wanting. Now three down, Pakistan trail by 267 runs.

9th over: Pakistan 18-2 (Shan 3, Babar 6) Cummins enters the attack as Starc is sent to pasture. It really is dreary in Adelaide. First day of summer and the crowd that remains are all rugged up. Over the wicket to Shan, Cummins tries in his own way to encourage the drive. And the leftie can’t resist an expansive slash at one wide of off, but he hits air only. He got nowhere near it and it’s a maiden for Cummins.

8th over: Pakistan 18-2 (Shan 3, Babar 6) Hazlewood continues full and outside off to Shan, working to a plan that’s bore fruit in the past. Nothing doing this over, however, with Shan scampering through for a single on the last ball to retain the strike.

7th over: Pakistan 17-2 (Shan 2, Babar 6) Starc from the other end and Babar gets off the mark at the first time of asking, punching through the covers for two. And it gets even better later in the over as Babar leans back and cuts beautifully past point for four. That one came right out of the middle. Classy stuff from a classy player.

6th over: Pakistan 11-2 (Shan 2, Babar 0) Ladies and germs, we’re back. Hazlewood again for Australia. Hell of a leave by Shan. Couldn’t have missed the top of off by much. A maiden to begin.

I was given a bum steer, which I passed onto you. Play will now resume at 7.40pm local time. So just a couple of minutes away. Babar is the new batsman. Pakistan trail by 276 runs. My do they need a knock of the ages from him, and most of the others for that matter.

I bear good tidings: the covers are off, the stumps are being reinserted and we are six or so minutes away from resuming play.

Some big love for Yasir Shah doing the rounds.

Updated

Rain stopped play!

The rain looks to have stopped, though the covers are still on. The umpires are discussing something in the middle. Either where to on Hindley St after stumps or when to resume play. Or both.

Yeah, ripper of a ball from Starc. Full and venomous. Azhar had to play at it.

WICKET! Azhar c Smith 9 (Pakistan 11-2)

5th over: Pakistan 11-2 (Shan 2) Starc again. He looks a bit ginger in his follow through. Ankle possibly? There are issues as his front foot is way behind the crease on delivery. Getting windy and cold in Adelaide. New boots mid-over for Starc. He’s not a happy fast bowler. What am I bid for Mitch’s old boots on e-bay?

And the new boots do the trick and Azhar wafts at one and picks out Smith, who dives and takes a seriously good catch low down at second slip. And it all happened under increasing rainfall, prompting players and officials to follow Azhar off the ground. Rain stopped play.

Updated

4th over: Pakistan 9-1 (Shan 2, Azhar 7) Three deliveries to finish off Hazlewood’s second over. Azhar gets off the mark with a boundary but it’s far from convincing as his thick edge beats third slip. A better shot follows and brings three forward of square. Big challenge here for the Pakistan skipper at No.3, which after that early loss is as good as opening anyway.

Kevin Wilson asks: “Is Yasir Shah the only guy to get a bowling and batting century in the same test?”

It’s rare, Kevin, but not that rare. Not sure the exact count but I think it’s happened over 50 times and I reckon Daniel Vettori might have achieved it twice. Anyone got the official figure?

Dinner - Pakistan 2-1 in their second innings (trail Australia by 285 runs)

Dinner (not sure I’ll ever get used to that term when discussing cricket) will taste that littler bit nicer for Tim Paine and Australia after they enforce the follow-on and get their breakthrough. Pakistan were gallant in that middle session but with so much ground to make up they are still nestled behind the eight ball, trailing by 200-and-plenty with the perils of the evening session to come. See you in half an hour or so.

WICKET! Imam lbw b Hazlewood 0 (Pakistan 2-1)

4th over: Pakistan 2-1 (Shan 2) Hazlewood is full to Imam and gets the breakthrough, zeroing a quick one into the batsman’s legs and trapping him plumb in front. Caught him flush on the crease. The batsmen confer but Shan had a good view of that at the non-striker’s end and there will be no review. Australia get their wicket before the break ... and that is dinner.

Josh Hazlewood
Josh Hazlewood celebrates the first wicket of Pakistan’s second innings. Photograph: William West/AFP via Getty Images

Updated

3rd over: Pakistan 2-0 (Shan 2, Imam 0) Starc errs down leg side and Pakistan are away, Shan clipping him forward of square for two. Looks like there’ll be another over before dinner.

2nd over: Pakistan 0-0 (Shan 0, Imam 0) Hazlewood on at the other end. The bespectacled Imam drives at a full one but gets little on it. Hazlewood fixes his length and it’s consecutive maidens from Australia. Incredible stat here on Yasir’s fifty, when then became a hundred, earlier on.

1st over: Pakistan 0-0 (Shan 0, Imam 0) Australia will have three overs at Pakistan before dinner. Starc opens and first ball he beats Shan’s outside edge. Curious decision to make Pakistan bat again, but you do want to be bowling in these conditions. Especially with the new ball. The wind is increasing and dark clouds are swirling. Starc finishes his maiden over by getting Shan’s inside edge, but the batsman’s pads save the day.

Pakistan 302 all out - Australia enforce the follow-on!

Interesting. After having Pakistan on the ropes at 89-6, they were out there long enough in the end. But Paine is asking his bowlers to go again. And, with the evening session to come, fair enough I guess.

Updated

WICKET! Yasir c Lyon b Cummins 113 (Pakistan 302 all out)

Musa again lives dangerously and again he survives, spooning Cummins over mid off. And again he knows little about it. But the end was always coming, and it’s Yasir who ends the resistance when picking out Lyon in the deep. Pakistan trail by 287 runs. Will Australia enforce the follow-on?

Nathan Lyon
Australia fielded poorly on day three of the second Test but Nathan Lyon made no mistake to remove Yasir Shah. Photograph: Scott Barbour/AAP

Updated

94th over: Pakistan 300-9 (Yasir 112, Musa 11) More from Lyon. Nice sweep from Yasir but third man is up and it’s a single only. That’s the 300 up for Pakistan. Musa then gives Australia’s close-in fielders a chance but his edge-onto-body clears them.

93rd over: Pakistan 299-9 (Yasir 111, Musa 11) Short again from Cummins, and I swear Yasir started to crouch down before the ball had even been released. Musa then pulls over midwicket for four. It was an amazing shot, mainly because he wasn’t looking anywhere near the ball at the point of contact. That’ll do me.

Updated

92nd over: Pakistan 288-9 (Yasir 107, Musa 5) Labuschagne drops a sitter. Again! Yasir pops one up to short leg, and it’s right in front of Labuschagne’s eyes, but somehow the chance goes begging. That’s twice this dig he’s dropped the century maker. Pakistan trail by 301 runs.

WICKET! Abbas c Warner b Cummins 29 (Pakistan 281-9)

91st over: Pakistan 287-9 (Yasir 106, Musa 5) Short again from Cummins and this time it works, Abbas doing his level best to fend off a quick one but succeeding only in finding Warner at gully. Musa then looks to know very little about his first ball in Test cricket but he still scores a boundary from it, skied high over the slip cordon and down to the third-man fence. A single follows and Yasir then goes the tonk, getting little of it but surviving all the same.

Mohammad Abbas
Mohammad Abbas walks from the field at the end of a valiant tailender’s knock. Photograph: David Mariuz/AAP

Updated

90th over: Pakistan 280-8 (Yasir 104, Abbas 29) Lyon asks the question for leg before, but Abbas might have got an edge first. I might have been going over. It definitely isn’t out. One from the over.

89th over: Pakistan 279-8 (Yasir 103, Abbas 29) And it is Cummins on from the other end. Not sure I’d like 6-66 as one of my Test returns - who am I kidding, of course I would - but that might be due to watching The Exorcist at the tender age of 12. Still not over it. Cummins mixes his length but the short stuff is of no interest to Abbas, who just ducks right under. Australia then offer the most tepid appeal for a catch at short leg, but with the ball hitting thigh pad only it’s easy to see why. Abbas clips Cummins past square for four to end the over. All looks rather easy right now.

88th over: Pakistan 274-8 (Yasir 102, Abbas 25) Starc has the demonic figures of 6-66, and with Lyon resuming after drinks one wonders if he’ll be stuck on it. It’s been almost nothing doing with the new ball - who’d have thought with eight wickets down Australia would turn to spin before a wicket’s been taken with the new cherry - and Lyon goes for a single in a mostly uneventful over.

Many thanks, Jonathan, and top of the evening to you all. A day of resistance thus far on the part of Pakistan and missed opportunities for Australia. If they’d been a bit sharper in the field, only the Lord himself (and, possibly, Mike Hussey) knows what we might be looking at right now. But pats on the back to both Yasir and Babar; their form from Brisbane was obviously no fluke. We’re still looking at something grossly uneven, however, unless Pakistan can hold this rearguard pose long enough to make a game of it. Anyway, the pleasure’s all mine. Please join me for some Test cricket this fine evening, the first of the summer months (if you’re down this way, of course). I can be contacted by email or by Twitter - @scott_heinrich

Right, that’s enough of my chuntering for the day. Time for Scott Heinrich to take over. Catch you tomorrow.

87th over: Pakistan 273-8 (Yasir 101, Abbas 25) For all the fun Yasir has given us today this is turning into quite the stinker for Australia. Tim Paine has let Pakistan of the hook by being too cute with his follow-on preparations and bowling his par-timers for long spells, and questions have to be asked of the bowling attack and their lack of patience and persistence. It’s a poor advertisement for the Adelaide Oval surface too, and the Kookaburra ball. I’m turning into quite the grumbler, aren’t I?

The latest Starc over is repelled smartly by Abbas who even picks up a couple through the covers.

100 to Yasir Shah!

86th over: Pakistan 270-8 (Yasir 100, Abbas 23) Dot. Dot. Dot. Tension building. A bit of chirp in the middle. Dot. Hazlewood characteristically line and length. Swipe! Ugly, mistimed aerial swipe. Heart in mouth. The giant Starc at mid-on leaps one-handed. The ball beats the fielder by a fingernail. Helmet off. Bat raised. Ton up.

Yasir Shah
Yasir Shah is a Test centurion. Photograph: Scott Barbour/AAP

Updated

85th over: Pakistan 269-8 (Yasir 99, Abbas 23) The first signs of edginess from Yasir! He wants to tip and run and get off strike against Starc but Abbas isn’t on the same page and there’s an awkward couple of “yes, no, waiting” scenarios before he rides a short ball to point and jogs through to reach 99. Abbas has two balls to defend and he does his job with the minimum of fuss. Yasir on strike to start the next over.

84th over: Pakistan 268-8 (Yasir 98, Abbas 23) Yasir is inching towards a remarkable century. Hazlewood is on his mark but he’s powerless to deny a wristy flick off a length to midwicket, or a drive to the offside sweeper. Just two more runs to go!

As an aside, during the previous Starc over Pakistan ran through for a leg-bye. It was the first extra Australia had conceded all innings.

83rd over: Pakistan 265-8 (Yasir 95, Abbas 23) Starc is making this new ball fly through the air at a rapid pace, and with no little swing. Yasir can’t get any bat on the balls he faces to advance his quest for a century, but fortunately for him Abbas holds his end up, blocking the straight ones, then getting an edge that flies between second and third slips but perhaps not at catchable height.

82nd over: Pakistan 260-8 (Yasir 95, Abbas 19) Hazlewood back into the attack for the first time in an age, and immediately he does Abbas with a jaffa that was, to coin a sledger’s parlance, too good. A single brings Yasir on strike who is now playing like VVS Laxman, contorting his rubbery wrists to a full delivery and whipping it to square leg to move to 95.

81st over: Pakistan 258-8 (Yasir 94, Abbas 18) Starc begins the 81st over with the old ball and Yasir can’t believe his luck, leg-glancing with Starc’s angle from around the wicket and collecting four runs to move into the 90s. Australia then do take the shiny new pink ball but the result is the same - a Yasir four to fine-leg! This is becoming a most peculiar day of Test cricket.

Yasir Shah
Yasir Shah enjoyed the innings of his life on day three of the second Test. Photograph: Scott Barbour/AAP

Updated

80th over: Pakistan 250-8 (Yasir 86, Abbas 18) That was a fun over. Yasir, guessing it was the final over with the old ball, attempted to get to his landmark ton sooner rather than later. He earns four with a squirty square drive but is then extremely fortunate to survive a top-edged sweep off Lyon that spirals into the air and just out of reach of a diving Smith.

79th over: Pakistan 245-8 (Yasir 81, Abbas 18) Abbas blocks five balls then launches a flat bat mow to Labuschagne that whistles to the long-on fence. This is very very weird.

78th over: Pakistan 241-8 (Yasir 81, Abbas 14) Lyon continues but Abbas is watchful, defending one then rotating the strike. Yasir is now a man in a hurry, slogging hard but without timing, and fortunate to see his ugly effort land short of Starc at deep mid-on. He seems aggreived to give up the strike to Abbas but from the non-striker’s end he gets to enjoy his tailend partner stroke an off drive with such timing he could be forgiven for thinking Babar never lost his wicket earlier in the day. Abbas now has his highest Test score.

Updated

77th over: Pakistan 234-8 (Yasir 80, Abbas 8) Labuschagne gets another over but Yasir is unconcerned, late cutting for a couple, wristily flicking for a brace, then drilling a straight drive for two more. This is a very odd passage of play.

76th over: Pakistan 228-8 (Yasir 74, Abbas 8) Smith is replaced after one over by Lyon but he has been Yasir’s preferred bowler today and again the no. 8 tucks in, cutting for two then whipping a single to move to his highest first-class score. Abbas likes the look of Lyon too, pulling out an almighty hoick for six, out of nowhere. That was like a flash of lightning in a cloudless sky on a sunny day. 31 balls of tailend scrap and then a flicker of Shahid Afridi. You have to love cricket.

75th over: Pakistan 219-8 (Yasir 71, Abbas 2) This is spooky Sunday because Labuschagne is sharing bowling duties after tea with Smith. Presumably the prospect of a follow on remains in play and Paine is hoping to winkle out the last couple of tailenders without redlining his pacemen. I’m sure that will all change by the time the new ball is due. Amongst the speculation Abbas plays out a trouble-free maiden.

74th over: Pakistan 219-8 (Yasir 71, Abbas 2) Smith does have the ball and he lands a serviceable over, but Yasir is untroubled by the variation, nudging, blocking and eventually slogging over cow corner for four. He is much more troubled by some mute calling from Abbas, only narrowly avoiding a very avoidable run out.

The first interval of the day during these day-night Tests is the 20-minute one, so players are already back out in the middle awaiting the resumption of hostilities. And, unexpectedly, Steve Smith has the ball in his hands...

“I’m not a fan of the Aussie team, partly because I think they are a microcosm of the questionable values we’re fed as Australians (esp. men) – sporting achievement trumps all, the dubious concept of ‘mateship’, Don Bradman is god,” emails Alex. “Overtaking him would weaken this huge pillar of Australian identity. I’m not against it! Surely someone has written a paper on this…” If not, we must put Geoff Lemon on the case forthwith.

Tea - Pakistan 213-8

Pakistan did well to grind their way through a 150-minute session for the loss of just two wickets. Yasir has had his luck, but he’s batted gamely, while Babar looked a class apart on his way to 97. Mitchell Starc changed the session in the space of two balls but Australia’s inability to mop up the tail surely means any chance of a follow-on being enforced is now over. Not the best session from a catching and fielding point of view, but with the match so heavily weighted in Australia’s favour I’m sure they won’t be overly concerned.

Australia
Australia remain on top of the second Test against Pakistan. Photograph: David Mariuz/AAP

73rd over: Pakistan 213-8 (Yasir 66, Abbas 1) Yasir is all over Lyon now, following up his exploits of their previous duel by smoking a square drive for four.

72nd over: Pakistan 208-8 (Yasir 61, Abbas 1) Starc’s decisive spell is over, so Tim Paine naturally turns to... Marnus Labuschagne. It doesn’t work. Abbas dead-bats and leaves his way through a maiden.

71st over: Pakistan 208-8 (Yasir 61, Abbas 1) Who is this batsman, and what has he done with Yasir Shah? Pakistan’s no. 8 is playing superbly, pulling Lyon for a boundary through midwicket then sashaying down the track and dumping the goat back over his head for four more.

Updated

70th over: Pakistan 200-8 (Yasir 53, Abbas 1) Abbas is still out there despite Starc beating the edge on a number of occasions. He even avoids falling into the short-ball trap set for him delivered with all the subterfuge of a Hanna Barbera cartoon character carrying a sign saying “bouncer coming up”.

Updated

69th over: Pakistan 200-8 (Yasir 53, Abbas 1) Yasir plays out a maiden against Lyon. Abbas on strike to Starc to begin the next over.

68th over: Pakistan 200-8 (Yasir 53, Abbas 1) Starc is now finding a hint of late reverse swing, meaning he is way too good for Pakistan’s tail to line up with any surety. Somehow he fails to take Yasir’s wicket despite a dismissal seeming inevitable.

Updated

67th over: Pakistan 197-8 (Yasir 50, Abbas 1) A hard-earned 50 for Yasir, his first in Test cricket. He’s had to ride his luck at times but he’s never lost his head despite a long stay at the crease.

Updated

66th over: Pakistan 195-8 (Yasir 48, Abbas 1) A momentum-changing over for Australia and further evidence of Mitchell Starc’s golden arm. The wicket of Babar was batsman error but the follow-up to Shaheen was why a genuine paceman is so valuable in Test cricket. Starc now has six wickets and Paine five catches for the innings.

Abbas survives the hat-trick ball.

Updated

WICKET! Shaheen LBW Starc 0 (Pakistan 194-8)

Oh lordy, that is salmon trout first ball. What is the last thing you want as a batsman first ball? A Mitchell Starc yorker of course. What did Shaheen get? A Mitchell Starc yorker. You know the rest. A forlorn review failed to overturn a very simple decision from the onfield umpire. Starc on a hat-trick!

Updated

WICKET! Babar c Paine b Starc 97 (Pakistan 194-7)

Now I’m confused. This is T20 bowler rotation. Starc is back after all that end-swapping from the spinners. And would you believe it? He strikes first ball, tempting Babar into a drive outside his off stump that ends skimming off the outside edge and into the gloves of the diving Paine. Finally, a breakthrough. Heartbreak for Babar though, perishing from what was just about his only false stroke in another superb innings.

Updated

65th over: Pakistan 194-6 (Babar 97, Yasir 48) Interesting, that isolated Starc over was the missing link in a Fox, chicken, grain scenario to allow both spinners to swap ends. Lyon returns to the attack then, but he begins with a long-hop that Yasir bludgeons for four through square-leg.

Updated

64th over: Pakistan 190-6 (Babar 97, Yasir 44) Turns out Paine was just allowing Labuschagne to swap ends, and it almost works perfectly but LABUSCHAGNE DROPS A SITTER in his follow through, shelling a Yasir leading edge that lobbed straight back to him but ended up on the deck. Pakistan have enjoyed plenty of good fortune today.

Meanwhile, in happier times for Labuschagne...

63rd over: Pakistan 188-6 (Babar 96, Yasir 43) Back to pace for the first time in a while with Starc replacing Labuschagne. Babar licks his lips and presents the full face of the bat to a length delivery that shoots past the bowler in his follow through before it’s pulled in just before the long-off rope. Yasir tucks in too, working a couple off his hip then guiding a four behind point. That boundary was the mark of a class batsman.

62nd over: Pakistan 179-6 (Babar 93, Yasir 37) Four runs from a stock standard Lyon over.

61st over: Pakistan 175-6 (Babar 90, Yasir 36) Beautiful from Labuschagne, finding Babar’s edge first ball then beating it second with a pair of perfectly flighted leggies that both turned just enough. The remainder of the over is less threatening and Babar fights back, drilling an over-pitched ball on leg stump down the ground for four then bullying a long-hop to the wide midwicket fence.

60th over: Pakistan 165-6 (Babar 80, Yasir 36) Lyon is really floating them up to Yasir now, tempting him as best he can, but despite failing to reach the pitch of the ball on a couple of occasions it’s a maiden over of solid defence from the Pakistan leggy.

59th over: Pakistan 165-6 (Babar 80, Yasir 36) Labuschagne continues but he can’t prevent Yasir bringing up his Cowan ton, nor can he deny Babar runs through the offside.

58th over: Pakistan 161-6 (Babar 77, Yasir 35) Kiss. Of. Death. Yasir must have telepathically read my last entry and decided to prove me wrong by dancing down the pitch to Lyon, missing with a nothing whoosh of a shot, and surviving a very obvious stumping chance only because Paine fluffed his lines behind the stumps.

57th over: Pakistan 160-6 (Babar 76, Yasir 35) A bit looser from Labuschagne this over but Pakistan fail to cash in. Yasir is showing admirable shot selection for a man with a career average of 12.72.

56th over: Pakistan 158-6 (Babar 75, Yasir 34) Lyon’s turn to put his head in his hands this time with the prized wicket of Babar almost his. A flighted delivery provokes the inside-edge onto pad but the deflection floats just wide of short-leg. A bit more happening out there now with the twin spin approach.

55th over: Pakistan 158-6 (Babar 75, Yasir 34) Labuschagne sent down a good over, almost snaring a wicket with one that bounced a fraction on Yasir who was stuck on the crease, but the edge from the shoulder of the bat died quickly on Smith at slip and he couldn’t jam his fingers under the ball cleanly enough to earn the benefit of any doubt. That’s the second chance to fall short of slip this morning. Is the cordon too deep?

Yasir not out

You know the drill, as soon as the appeal goes up to the TV umpire with a soft-signal of not-out the foreshortened vision is only ever going to confirm the initial judgement.

Review!

Smith may have caught Yasir off Labuschagne, but the soft signal is not-out.

54th over: Pakistan 156-6 (Babar 74, Yasir 33) Spin from both ends with Labuschagne and Lyon operating in tandem. Australia seem to simply be waiting for a mistake at the moment. It’s still the best part of a session until the second new ball is due. Not the most thrilling spectacle.

53rd over: Pakistan 155-6 (Babar 74, Yasir 32) This might shake things up, Marnus Labuschagne is on to bowl his occasional leg-spin. It might have done, I can’t tell you, because I just experienced a brief power cut. Shrug emoji.

52nd over: Pakistan 153-6 (Babar 73, Yasir 31) Australia have been surprisingly flat considering the state of play. All in all it’s a bit of a soporific scene. The crowd is sparse, fielders and bowlers are going through the motions, and Pakistan are calmly going about the business of avoiding a whopping defeat.

51st over: Pakistan 151-6 (Babar 72, Yasir 30) Babar is batting with complete control at the moment and Australia look devoid of inspiration bowling to him. Even Cummins is unable to challenge Pakistan’s star who impudently flicks a four through midwicket despite standing legside of a length delivery.

50th over: Pakistan 143-6 (Babar 65, Yasir 29) I reckon this partnership has done enough to end any thoughts of the follow-on being enforced (that sound you can hear is the SACA CEO counting his Christmas bonus). Lyon again looks threatening but fails to take a wicket.

49th over: Pakistan 140-6 (Babar 63, Yasir 28) Yasir is riding his luck now. After escaping all manner of dismissals in recent overs he adds ‘almost run out’ to his collection but benefits from Joe Burns missing his shy at the non-striker’s end following a suicidal single. Babar restores order by leaning into a cover drive off Cummins so pure it’s like a shaft of celestial light guiding humanity to a brighter future.

48th over: Pakistan 135-6 (Babar 60, Yasir 26) Yasir has got away with a couple of rash strokes at Lyon, one of those this over, when he misses a lash to cow corner. As a result he resorts to propping forward a dead-batting, but that strategy almost comes a cropper when he gets a thick edge that looks destined for Smith’s safe hands at first slip but it dies just in time and arrives on the half-volley.

47th over: Pakistan 135-6 (Babar 60, Yasir 26) Cummins continues and he has a rare full over at Babar, one that ends in a maiden. It’s probably worth noting Tim Paine is not in the best of health behind the stumps. He took a blow to a finger on his right hand earlier in the morning when a Starc delivery wobbled a fraction after it passed the bat and he was grimacing and shaking his glove again this over when he gathered a bouncer.

46th over: Pakistan 135-6 (Babar 60, Yasir 26) Another over, another single to Babar, another series of dots to Yasir. This time however Lyon does eventually extract a false stroke from Pakistan’s no. 8, but the ambitious drive flies through the unguarded third or fourth slip region.

45th over: Pakistan 132-6 (Babar 59, Yasir 24) The pattern of the afternoon continues. Cummins bowls reasonably well, Babar rotates strike comfortably, Yasir digs in. This has not been the most thrilling 45-minutes of sport.

“We’ve got six rock-hard avocados on our kitchen table,” sniffs Mike Atherton, covering the NZ v England Test in Hamilton. “I reckon they’d be more interesting to bowl with than a Kookaburra ball.” I borrowed this from our NZ v England liveblog but it bears repeating here. My kingdom for some sideways movement.

44th over: Pakistan 131-6 (Babar 58, Yasir 24) It’s taken 43 overs but it’s finally time for spin and the introduction of Nathan Lyon. Babar is predictably unfazed, riding some extra bounce to cut behind point for three. Yasir does not look as comfortable, giving short-leg a sniff of a bat-pad chance, but he cashes in on some extra length, driving smartly through extra-cover for four.

43rd over: Pakistan 124-6 (Babar 55, Yasir 20) Cummins replaces Hazlewood but the pattern remains the same: Babar milks a single with the minimum of fuss, then Yasir unconvincingly defends his wicket. He’s beaten all ends up from the final two deliveries of the over but somehow avoids an edge or the sound of his timbers rattling.

42nd over: Pakistan 123-6 (Babar 54, Yasir 20) Babar looks impregnable for Pakistan - Yasir, not so much. Since moving from over to around the wicket Starc has troubled the leg-spinner with every delivery. This over he beats the outside edge, then finds it, only to see the ball fly through the vacant gully region for four. The follow up is a slippery yorker than Yasir does well to dig out.

41st over: Pakistan 118-6 (Babar 53, Yasir 16) Into his third over of the afternoon Hazlewood has found his groove. But there’s so little happening in the air or off the pitch Pakistan are able to get in line, defend securely, and accept runs when their firm pushes beat the field.

It is hard going for Australia’s pacemen. Should more to be done to encourage the ball to move laterally, like say, allow a certain degree of ball manipulation by the fielding side? I think so.

40th over: Pakistan 115-6 (Babar 52, Yasir 14) Yasir continues to hold his end up for Pakistan. He’s not the most compact or elegant looking batsman but he has been effective so far, watching Starc closely and adapting to the range of lines and lengths the left-hander inevitably hurls down. Starc looks immediately more threatening when he moves around the wicket but some stifled appeals are as close as he comes to the first breakthrough of the day.

39th over: Pakistan 113-6 (Babar 52, Yasir 12) Yasir is farming the strike so far this morning, and it’s working for Pakistan. This over he repels Hazlewood’s good balls - and there are far more than in his opening over - and profits by slapping a decent short ball to the midwicket boundary. Babar has barely seen the strike but he’s smoked two sumptuous fours, the latest of which clipped off his pads to bring up his half-century.

38th over: Pakistan 104-6 (Babar 48, Yasir 7) Better from Starc, beating Yasir for pace outside his off stump then finding a testing line and length and hitting the bat hard. After doing well just to prolong his stay at the crease Yasir aims a drive to the final delivery of the over and advances his score by one with a mistimed shot that runs towards deep point. Starc is bowling over the wicket to the right-handed no. 8.

37th over: Pakistan 103-6 (Babar 48, Yasir 6) Hazlewood sends down five dots to Yasir from the river end before the batsman nudges a single to the on-side. It’s an unthreatening set of six that are in the main too short and too wide. This has been a sleepy start so far in the city of churches.

36th over: Pakistan 102-6 (Babar 48, Yasir 5) The day begins gently with Babar and Yasir exchanging singles off Starc before Babar, Pakistan’s one genuine star, demonstrates a textbook on-drive, earning a ripple of applause when a standing ovation was probably worthy. Starc just easing into his work. Nothing notable happening in the air or off the pitch.

The players are out in the middle of Adelaide Oval, Australia in cream cable-knit sweater vests, Pakistan in crisp brilliant white. Mitchell Starc has the ball in his hands. Let’s do this.

“How’s the weather looking in Adelaide?” asks Phillip Lewis by email. Well Phillip, it’s chilly, blustery and overcast. It would be no surprise to see a brief shower delay play at some point but hopefully nothing worse than that.

“The extra half hour means I expect 97 and a half overs in today, less 3 overs for the inevitable change of innings. With the result of the game more or less an inevitability perhaps the home team could set themselves the challenge of ensuring the over rate is in line with public and official expectations. This would be a huge boost to Test cricket around the world.”

You are talking my language Phillip. I am very much in the camp that thinks over-rate management should be much higher on the list of priorities for the ICC.

Meanwhile in domestic cricket, the Renegades have just beaten the Thunder to seal their spot in the WBBL finals. That means Ellyse Perry and Alyssa Healy’s Sixers will miss the finals for the first time.

This is not the only Test cricket going on in this part of the world. Further south in Hamilton, England are staging a fightback in the second Test against New Zealand with Rory Burns and Joe Root finding form. You can catch up on that one over here.

Pitch: Insert your own preferred synonym for flat.

Weather: Conditions are not optimal in Adelaide, it has to be said. It is cool and windy with showers floating about. The greatest likelihood of an interruption to play will be during the second session.

Preamble

Hello everybody and welcome to live OBO coverage of day three of the second Test between Australia and Pakistan from Adelaide Oval.

A quick public service announcement before we tuck in. Play will start half-an-hour early to continue making up time lost to rain on day one. Here’s today’s session times in AEDT: 2pm-4.30pm | 4.50pm-6.50pm | 7.30pm-9.30pm.

When play gets underway the only question that really needs answering is: how long will it take Australia to polish off victory? In home conditions they are simply a much better Test cricket side than Pakistan. The one-sided nature of their win in Brisbane is being replicated here in Adelaide and a series whitewash is all but assured after only six sessions in the Athens of the south.

Pakistan will resume on 96-6 with Australia’s trio of pacemen hungry to mop up the tail and steal some of the limelight hogged yesterday by David Warner. Standing in their way is one man, Babar Azam, the only tourist capable of competing with his hosts in any discipline. He is unbeaten on 43 and his wicket will be prized more than any other.

Otherwise today is sure to be one of reflection following Warner’s extravagant feats yesterday. It baffles me that his batting has caused such a furore over the rights and wrongs of respecting historical landmarks. I thought his job was to score runs and win cricket matches. Australians have a very particular way of getting their knickers in a twist about confected rights and wrongs to do with sporting behaviour (see Warner, D: sandpaper) and this is right up there with the most peculiar of them.

If you have any thoughts on Warner, Bradman, twisted knickers, or anything else cricket related, please drop me a line either on Twitter - @JPHowcroft- or by email - jonathan.howcroft.casual@theguardian.com.

Murs here, preempting Warner upsetting the Bradmanphiles by a decade or so.
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