da cassino： Plays of the day for the third day of the second Test between Australia and Pakistan at the MCG
da realsbet： Osman Samiuddin at the MCG28-Dec-2009First impressions
First impressions last, especially on Australian crowds, and there are fewbetter ways to do it than what Umar Akmal pulled off. Pakistan’s big battinghope came here with a big reputation and he had been quietly solid towardsthe close of play yesterday. He started off cautiously this morning, but abrutal wake-up call from Peter Siddle, who pinged him square on thehelmet, brought about an audacious response. A couple of Siddle overslater, he drove and pulled him for 19 runs, including a monstroussix over long-on. Impetuosity got him soon after a fourth half-century, but theannouncement had been made.Practice makes perfect?
Pakistan’s catching has been poor in this Test, though it doesn’t seem tobe for want of trying. Intikhab Alam said they are trying to resolve theproblem at the grassroots level and they held a catching session during thetea interval on the third afternoon. Salman Butt dropped three catches ina row during practice, which clearly helped him take the one at deep square legto send back Ricky Ponting a little while later.The day of the night(watchmen)
What Australian nightwatchmen can do, Pakistan’s can do better? Maybe not.Nathan Hauritz frustrated Pakistan yesterday morning for an entiresession, having come in before the end of the first day. MohammadAamer came in to face the last ball of day two and lasted the entire firstsession this morning as well. Hauritz, of course, helped himself to anunusually free-spirited half century in that time, while Aamer did a fairlatter-day impersonation of Hanif Mohammad, grinding out ten runs in twohours. Both innings say something about the pitch though.Not the season’s greetings Hauritz wanted
Pakistan have felt Hauritz could be vulnerable to aggressivebatting and Misbah-ul-Haq wasted no time doing just that. Hauritz’s firstball on the third day was slogged mercilessly over midwicket before thefollowing delivery was smashed to the same region for four. The assaultwas all the more memorable because Pakistan looked like they’d fallenasleep for the previous ten overs, which had brought 13 runs. The captainMohammad Yousuf had set the precedent on the second day, when he came tothe crease and within three balls launched Hauritz high over his head forsix.Hussey’s review deja vu
Michael Hussey asked for a review when he was adjudged lbw toAamer and Hawkeye showed the impact in line with offstump and indicated the ball would clip the bails. The line-ball naturemeant that Billy Doctrove’s on-field decision of out remained, and therewas a distinct sense of deja vu for Hussey. In the first innings he hadalso questioned Doctrove’s lbw decision when he was out sweeping SaeedAjmal, and, on that occasion, too, Hawkeye showed the ball striking him marginally in line and probably clipping the bails. But on neither occasion was Doctrove’s decision shown to be wrong, implying the system had worked.Kiss of the day
Aamer bowled a fiery spell to a sturdy Shane Watson to liven upthe final session. He peppered him with bouncers from round the wicket,clocking over 150kmph on a couple of occasions. Still he found time toshow Watson some love, following a particularly brutal short-pitcheddelivery with a delicate air kiss in his follow-through. Much toeveryone’s disappointment, Watson didn’t return the favour, though it would’ve made for a nice PR gesture given his antics against West Indies.
