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Aaron Finch’s return to form with a sensational half-century and Nathan Ellis’ remarkable four-wicket haul performance helped Australia to crush Pakistan in the one-off T20I at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Tuesday.
Finch, who had not scored a fifty in the last 13 T20Is, roared back into the form, hitting a crucial 45-ball 55 to anchor Australia’s chase.
Apart from Finch, Travis Head (26), Josh Inglis (24), Marcus Stoinis (23), and Ben McDermott (22 no) chipped in with valuable contributions to take Australia home with five balls to spare and three wickets in hand.
Earlier, Ellis exhibited outstanding bowling skills to help the Aussies restrict the hosts at 162/8 in their allotted 20 overs. Ellis picked up a brilliant four-wicket haul for 28 in his quota of 4 overs.
For Pakistan, only captain Babar Azam could stand tall in front of a decent Australian bowling attack. The right-handed batter smashed 66 off 46 deliveries with the help of eight boundaries, including a couple of sixes.
“It was certainly was, the way our bowlers attacked after the start they got, such an inexperienced attack as well was fantastic. Nathan Ellis came back well after a rought start which showed his character. Really good sign of things to come for our white-ball team. Everything we do will be with one eye on the World Cup – both in the T20 format and the ODIs. Really proud of the entire group, we have been in bubbles and other things but the resilience shown over the couple of years has been fantastic,” said Finch after the match.
Here is how Twitter reacted:
Our Aussie men finished their tour of Pakistan on a high with a three wicket victory in the only T20!
Aaron Finch was awarded Player of the Match for his 55 (45), while Nathan Ellis was dominant with 4/28 (4) 👏 #PAKvAUS pic.twitter.com/PULQQs8Nq7
— Cricket Australia (@CricketAus) April 5, 2022
At the end of a hard-fought T20I, Pakistan and Australia players exchanged shirts, caps and bats, a memorable end to a truly historic tour.#BoysReadyHain l #PAKvAUS pic.twitter.com/Y2kxFqjgKJ
— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) April 6, 2022
Great win 🇦🇺 class from @AaronFinch5 👏🏼
— Pat Cummins (@patcummins30) April 5, 2022
Nice to cap off the tour of Pakistan by making my T20 debut for Australia last night, and even better to come away with the win too 🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/lihSnh0EyT
— Marnus Labuschagne (@marnus3cricket) April 6, 2022
What an amazing tour we’ve had in Pakistan. To be a part of the first Australian mens team to play here since 1998 is an honor.
Thank you to the @TheRealPCB and all of the fans in Pakistan, you’ve made it a special tour 🙏🏼🇦🇺🇵🇰 pic.twitter.com/Ac2zc53oFB
— Aaron Finch (@AaronFinch5) April 6, 2022
Winners! 🏆
A ripping spell from @HurricanesBBL quick Nathan Ellis, plus a classy captain's knock from Aaron Finch of the @RenegadesBBL in Australia's T20I victory against Pakistan 🇵🇰🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/4yXXe7zJMv
— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) April 5, 2022
Winners! 🏆
A ripping spell from @HurricanesBBL quick Nathan Ellis, plus a classy captain's knock from Aaron Finch of the @RenegadesBBL in Australia's T20I victory against Pakistan 🇵🇰🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/4yXXe7zJMv
— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) April 5, 2022
Both captains opening the batting and scoring 50+ runs in a T20I match:
IRE☘️ v SCO🏴 at Al Amerat, 2019
Paul Stirling 56(42), Kyle Coetzer 74(38)PAK🇵🇰 v AUS🇦🇺 at Lahore, 2022
Babar Azam 66(46), Aaron Finch 55(45)#PAKvAUS— Kausthub Gudipati (@kaustats) April 6, 2022
It finished like it started over a month ago with hugs and laughter between the Australian & Pakistani players. And yes, it was the kind of tour that turned even the stone-hearted among us a bit mushy in the end #PAKvAUS pic.twitter.com/ov7jASG5AN
— Bharat Sundaresan (@beastieboy07) April 5, 2022
From start to finish this series has been played in a wonderful spirit #PAKvAUS #Cricket pic.twitter.com/Yt4eIlnYLm
— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) April 5, 2022