MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Pakistan captain Shan Masood won the toss on Tuesday and sent Australia battling overcast conditions at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the second Test of the three-match series.
A maximum temperature of 26 Celsius (79 Fahrenheit) was forecast. Heavy overnight rain had escaped, but further showers and possible thunderstorms are forecast for Tuesday afternoon in Melbourne.
Australia, leading the series 1-0 after a 360-run victory in the first Test in Perth, he was named an unchanged side.
“There was a bit of time around so we’d like to take every opportunity with the ball,” Masood said.
Australia captain Pat Cummins also said he would have opted to play first on the grass pitch.
Pakistan made three changes. Wicketkeeper Sarfaraz Ahmed was dropped after scoring seven runs in the Perth Test, paving the way for the return of Mohammad Rizwan. Fast bowler Khurram Shahzad, who claimed five wickets on debut in Perth, has been ruled out of the Melbourne Test with a rib injury.
Medium pacer Faheem Ashraf (1-130) has been dropped as pacemen Hasan Ali and Mir Hamza return to the side. Specialist spinner Sajid Khan was named in a 12-man squad but was omitted for the Melbourne Test.
Spinner Noman Ali is unavailable for the series after undergoing surgery in Melbourne last week for appendicitis. Abrar Ahmed, who missed the first Test, has also been ruled out of the second Test due to a leg injury.
Usman Khawaja, Australia’s opener, who was reprimanded by the International Cricket Council because he wore a black armband in support of the Palestinians in Gaza during the first Test, he said before the second Test that he did not plan to wear the armband again during the series.
ICC regulations prevent cricketers from displaying messages of political, religious or racial causes during international matches. Khawaja was born in Pakistan and is the first Muslim to play Test cricket for Australia.
But the left-hander’s application to the ICC to be allowed to display images of a dove holding an olive branch — recognized as a world peace symbol — on his right boot and the back of his bat during the Melbourne Test was rejected.
Khawaja said on Instagram that the ICC decision was “inconsistent”, while Cummins defended his opener for standing up for his beliefs.
“He did it really respectfully,” Cummins said Monday. “But obviously there are rules and I believe the ICC has said they’re not going to approve it. They make the rules and you have to accept that.”
The third Test of the three-match series is scheduled to begin on January 3 at the Sydney Cricket Ground, where Pakistan won their last Test in Australia almost 30 years ago.
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Lineups:
Australia: David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins (captain), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.
Pakistan: Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (captain), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali, Mir Hamza, Aamir Jamal.
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AP Cricket: