Pakistan’s middle-order batsman, Saud Shakeel, etched his name in history during the second innings of the opening Test against Australia at Perth Stadium.
Pakistan vs Australia: Green Team Finish Day 2 on 132-2
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Shakeel, in his eighth Test, achieved a remarkable feat by becoming the first red-ball cricketer to score a minimum of 20 runs in each of his initial 15 innings. This milestone surpassed Everton Weekes’ record of achieving 20 runs in 14 consecutive innings.
The 28-year-old is now just one innings away from matching the record set by Australia’s Colin McDonald, who managed at least 10 runs in his first 16 Test innings.
However, Pakistan faced a tough challenge during their pursuit of a daunting 450-run target and stumbled significantly, losing half their side for just 80 runs collectively.
None of the batters could withstand the relentless Australian pace trio of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, and Josh Hazlewood.
At the time of reporting, Pakistan was struggling at 79-6, with Saud Shakeel (21*) and Faheem Ashraf (3*) at the crease, needing 371 runs for victory.
Pakistan’s chase commenced on a grim note as Abdullah Shafique fell early for two runs, edged out by Mitchell Starc. Captain Shan Masood followed suit, departing for just two runs after a nick to the wicketkeeper off Hazlewood’s delivery.
Starc and Cummins added to Pakistan’s woes by dismissing Imam-ul-Haq and Babar Azam, respectively, leaving Shakeel on 10 and Sarfaraz Ahmed on one at the interval.
Earlier in the day, Australia declared their second innings at 233-5 after Pakistan’s first innings of 271.
Captain Pat Cummins made the call after opener Usman Khawaja departed for a resilient 90. Mitchell Marsh remained unbeaten at 63, despite Pakistan dismissing Steve Smith and Travis Head early on day four.
