HOBART: Beth Mooney led the batting charge after bowlers decimated the visitors’ batting lineup as Australia outclassed Pakistan in the second T20I on Thursday and sealed the series with a game to spare. Australia tapped the full extent of their bowling arsenal as they utilized nine bowlers to confine Pakistan’s fragile batting on a paltry total of 96/7 after they opted to bat first.

In return, Mooney displayed her striking prowess as she scored a stunning 46 from 29 balls to steer Australia to a comfortable eight-wicket win with 44 balls to spare. Skipper Meg Lanning, on the other hand, contributed 31 off 32 in the chase before she was dismissed in the ninth over off Nida Dar, who then went on to hunt down Mooney in her next over.

Earlier, opener Munneba Ali and skipper Bismah Maroof put up a brief resistance as the two gathered 35 runs for the second wicket before Pakistan underwent a middle-over collapse and started to lose wickets at regular intervals.

Besides Muneeba’s 35 and the skipper’s unbeaten 29 from 28 balls, none of the batters could make an impactful batting performance. A paltry 97-run target was never enough to cause any trouble to the mighty Australian side, who have now defeated Pakistan in five consecutive matches during the tour, including three ODIs. With yet another disappointing outcome following a 3-0 ODI series whitewash, Pakistan are yet to find their first win in Australia with only a T20I now left to be played.

Published in The Daily National Courier, January, 27 2023

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