Pakistan won the toss and promptly put Australia into bat. Sarfaraz Ahmed’s decision seemed spot on as Mohammad Amir steamed in for a very probing first over to skipper Aaron Finch, before Shaheen Shah Afridi gave him a chance to free his arms – and Finch obliged to start off a 17-run fourth over with a six and open the floodgates.
Finch and Warner found their groove soon, or were rather given more than a helping hand in recovering their form. The duo shared a first-wicket stand of 146 – the highest partnership for any wicket at this World Cup till now – and laid the foundations for a mammoth score.
In the process, Warner (107), who copped flak for his slow knock against India, silenced his critics by notching up his first century in ODIs since completing his ban for ball-tampering off 102 balls.
The icing on the cake for Amir, who single-handedly brought his side back into the reckoning, was when he outfoxed Mitchell Starc to complete his maiden fifer and bowl Australia out for 307.
The Australians had Pakistan exactly where they wanted them – under pressure and losing wickets at regular intervals.
Australia’s third win of the tournament has taken them up to second on the points table, while Pakistan are two places from bottom with three points to their name from four games
