Slow over-rate? Say no more, as Pakistan bowls Australia out under 100 overs in this three-match ODI series, one that produced both a nine- and an eight-wicket win. Pakistan had lost 26 of their last 28 games across formats in this country, had seen a captain and coach resign within the last month, and played no 50-over cricket for a year. Australia fielded a near-full strength side for each of the first two games, and were, as they often tend to be, reigning world champions in this format. Of course, these games were going to be one sided; Australia needed to do little more than turn up wearing the baggy Green. Nobody gave Pakistan a chance. This was the land down under, not the land upside down. They don’t do that kind of thing round here.

It is remarkable how simple it was after all. Babar Azam had often tried to hide his side’s weaknesses as leader; Mohammad Rizwan wore them like a war wound. Yes, Pakistan had no answer to Adam Zampa. So they didn’t play a spinner at all. Yes, they didn’t have an all-rounder they felt they could trust. So they just played four bowlers. Yes, four express seamers would be an issue for the over-rate. So they made sure they bowled Australia out in 40 overs. Yes, they didn’t have much batting depth either. So they made sure to bowl Australia out modestly enough they didn’t have to chase much.

There Pakistan stood, their glaring weaknesses in full view, their soft underbelly exposed for Australia to slice through. But Pakistan have spent much too long on the defensive against Australia, and have the scarring to show how that ends. The recent Test series against England had demonstrated the value of bespoke conditions as a route to victory, and so, on these bouncier, seaming surfaces, they burnt their bridges and unleashed their four-pronged pace attack.

There was Shaheen Shah Afridi, a man denuded – of both his captaincy and his pace – looking for arrows to add to his quiver. Experimenting with his wrist position and finding sideways movement both ways, he was arguably the bowler of the series. Australia opened with Matthew Short and Jake Fraser-McGurk, two men with T20 strike rates north of 150. Up against them with the field in, Shaheen’s economy of 3.76 was the lowest of any bowler all series, and he would account for three of the six times they fell, combining for 78 runs in 84 balls across the series.

There was Naseem Shah, the most proficient at making the ball talk at pace, perfecting the art of bowling beautiful deliveries that don’t get wickets. Arguably Pakistan’s best bowler in the third game, he made up for his relative expense with menace across all phases of play, especially puncturing Australia early on with new-ball wickets in the final two games.

Mohammad Hasnain, whose painfully shy exterior belies the fire that burns underneath, didn’t quite get the number of wickets his team-mates did, but snared the one he really wanted. He would toy with Marcus Stoinis, who once accused him of chucking in the Hundred, before bringing his tortured stay at the crease to a close. There was a brief moment when he considered giving the batter an invective-laden send-off before quickly realising it didn’t come naturally to him, and turned his innocent smile back towards the team-mates who rushed to mob him.

Polar opposite, of course, is Haris Rauf, the man this series truly belonged to. Perhaps it is his unapologetic extroversion that has seen him do so well in Australia. His record here is well known, but he hadn’t actually played a one-day game in this country until last week. And yet, his main character energy blazed through every pore as he bent Australia to his will. It was exemplified by his takedown of Australia’s flashiest star in this line-up, Glenn Maxwell dismissed three times in nine balls, a microcosm of a mismatch that told the story of this series.

There are glimpses of optimism elsewhere, too. Rizwan’s proactive captaincy may signal a tonal shift for a side that has trudged directionless in the shorter formats for several years now. As Fakhar Zaman approaches the home stretch of his career, there is perhaps also the rustle of large shoes beginning to be filled. Saim Ayub’s nerveless displays in two chases that have historical banana-skin potential for Pakistan justify his gradual induction into ODIs; he is already the second-highest Pakistani run-scorer in successful winning chases against Australia in Australia, six runs behind Javed Miandad.

It Is a mark of how dominant Pakistan have been this series that the middle order hasn’t really been tested but there is possibly a sign Babar hasn’t lost his touch in his favourite format. A respectable 37 in the first game was followed by two brief unbeaten cameos replete with that sumptuous shot-making repertoire that still sees him ranked the best ODI batter in the world.

There will be the usual nitpicking from the type of people one tends to weed out of party invitations that this was just one series. That Australia rested a few players in the first two games, and many more in the third. That their eyes are firmly on the Border-Gavaskar prize over the next couple of months, or that Pakistan still have ODI weaknesses they haven’t really demonstrated an ability to address.

They’re often the same people who tend to complain about bilateral series having lost their lustre. But bilateral series, like any other competition, only gain their value through teams caring about them, and Pakistan care about wins in Australia perhaps more than anything else in cricket. It is where their brand was birthed in 1992, where scraps of success make up for tidal waves of heartbreak.

Maybe Pakistan are building something here, but maybe they’re not. In 2002, when they last beat Australia in an ODI series, they would go on to have disastrous Champions Trophy and World Cup campaigns. For this side, a series win in Australia is a prize that does not need extraneous context. It is a breath of cool air atop a mountain only few get to scale; when you’re at the top you’re not thinking about the next ascent.

Within moments of the winning runs being hit, they took laps of honour around the Optus Stadium, their fans thronging the sidelines to sneak a glimpse or snatch an autograph. The players and coaching staff embraced, emotion writ large on their faces. Rizwan threw himself into the arms of the fitness trainer, Shaheen buried his head in Rauf’s shoulders. There was a warm embrace between Rizwan and Babar, the strains of a friendship that has been tested so severely cast off momentarily.

Pakistan will always find time to worry about the future, but living in the present is never easier than days like this. Completing a remarkable revival, having been engulfed in turmoil ahead of the tour, Pakistan claimed a rare series triumph in Australia after a comprehensive eight-wicket victory on a bouncy Optus Stadium surface in the third and final ODI. Having lost a heartbreaker in the opener at the MCG, Pakistan rebounded brilliantly with almost flawless performances in Adelaide and Perth to completely overwhelm world champions Australia, who have plenty of question marks ahead of the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025.

It was Pakistan's first series victory in Australia since 2002 and a result made more incredible given white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten quit just a week before the tour amid well-worn Pakistani turmoil. But Pakistan appeared galvanised under Jason Gillespie, their Australian Test coach who is filling the shoes of Kirsten, and were ignited by a rampant four-pronged attack that routed a shorthanded Australia without their Test stars for 140 in just 31.5 overs.

There were no infamous wobbles for Pakistan, who romped home in the 27th over. Australia capped a sluggish series with a sloppy performance in the field. Opener Saim Ayub had an early reprieve, while Adam Zampa spilt a sitter at deep square leg to reprieve Abdullah Shafique as Australia faced the humiliating prospect of a first ever 10-wicket ODI loss at home. But Lance Morris, who showcased his trademark pace by hitting speeds in the mid-140 kph, at least saved Australia from an unwanted place in the record books with the wickets of Shafique and Ayub in the 18th over.

Pakistan’s attack smartly did not get carried away with the bounce on offer as their quicks bowled unrelenting line and lengths to totally smother Australia, who once again would be disappointed with their shot selections on a surface that was not a minefield. No Australia batter scored a half-century across the series. Pakistan entered in the unfamiliar position of favourites in a country where they have endured so much misery over the years. Their optimism was heightened by Australia making five changes after skipper Pat Cummins, Steven Smith, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc and Marnus Labuschagne were rested as they start to prepare for the first Test against India.

About the writer
Shahzeb Ali Rizvi is a sports aficionado with a keen eye for the intricacies of cricket and football. He can be reached at [email protected]