Australia levelled the Pakistan Vs Australia ODI series at 1-1 on Friday, beating the hosts by 41 runs at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium after Nathan Ellis ripped through Pakistan with 4-33 in nine overs. Pakistan were bowled out for 190 chasing 232, leaving the third and final match to decide the series.
The result mattered because Pakistan had won the opening ODI by five wickets in Rawalpindi and had been expected to make the most of the slow, spin-friendly surface. Instead, Australia’s pace bowler Ellis set the tone, supported by Matt Short’s 3-36, Adam Zampa’s 1-30, Tanveer Sangha’s 1-22 and Matt Kuhnemann’s 1-41, even though the visitors had come in without Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitch Starc.
Australia’s innings was built around Josh Inglis and Cameron Green, who made half-centuries to lift the total to 232. Inglis made 51 off 74 balls, Green 53 off 92, while Matt Renshaw added 43 off 43 and Oliver Peake scored 31 off 32. Peake also closed the innings with 10 runs in two balls off Haris Rauf, a late burst that gave Australia a target that proved enough.
Pakistan’s reply never quite found a clean rhythm. Ghazi Ghori made 37, Shadab Khan was last out for 77 after adding 59 with Arafat Minhas in 15.3 overs, but Australia kept breaking the innings at the right moments. Alex Carey’s first-ball dismissal, bowled trying to cut a wide loosener from Shaheen Shah Afridi, briefly hinted at a wobble for the tourists, but it proved to be only a footnote in a match defined by their bowling control.
There was a sharper edge to the result because Pakistan had taken the first ODI and because spin was supposed to matter more than pace on these wickets. Australia responded by bringing in Adam Zampa for Billy Stanlake, and the move paid off even without the fast-bowling stars they were missing. The decider now sits as the clear next step, with Pakistan needing a response after being held to 190 and Australia carrying the momentum from a win driven by Ellis, Inglis, Green and a disciplined attack.
