By Tom Wald
January 4th 2010 @ 12:41am
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Asif? Pakistan make Australia look ordinary
Mohammad Asif made a mockery with the ball of Ricky Ponting’s decision to bat first on one of the greenest SCG pitches in living memory as Pakistan pummelled Australia on a rain-affected opening day of the second Test.
Asif (6-41) and fellow quick Mohammad Sami (3-27) thrived in the humid, overcast conditions as Australia were bundled out for 127 – their second lowest total on home soil against the tourists.
In reply, the tourists reached 0-14 at stumps with Imran Farhat (9no) and Salman Butt (3no) surviving the 4.1 overs before bad light ended play early.
Mike Hussey (28), one of the few batsmen to reach double figures on Sunday, said he was not surprised by Ponting’s decision to bat first.
“I did joke with Ricky a day before the game saying he batted at Johannesburg in the first Test against South Africa (in 2009) and that wicket had branches growing on it,” he said.
“I didn’t think he’d bowl first on any wicket and the world and that was proved again today.”
Australia have not made a side bat first since Ponting’s infamous decision to send England in at Edgbaston in the second Ashes Test of the 2005 series.
Since then, Ponting has won the toss 23 times and elected to bat on every occasion.
Asif bowed to the Australian captain’s judgment after reaping the rewards of Ponting’s call.
“He knows better than us,” said Asif, who only recently returned from a one-year drugs ban for steroids.
His captain Mohammad Yousuf had been less charitable about Ponting’s decision after the toss.
“It was a good toss to lose, maybe if we had won the toss we would bowl first,” he said.
Ponting had earlier said it was not a “big decision” and Hussey said the Australians should have done better in the testing conditions.
“I don’t think it was a 127 all out pitch,” he said.
But it could have been even more disastrous for Australia.
The hosts slipped to 7-62 at one stage before No.8 Mitchell Johnson (38) and No.9 Nathan Hauritz (21) put on 42 to save their side from even greater embarrassment.
Sami (3-27) earlier initiated the carnage by having Australia’s three top batsmen back in the pavilion with the tally having only just reached double figures.
He started in sensational fashion by dismissing Phillip Hughes and skipper Ponting for ducks in successive deliveries in the fourth over of play.
Hughes endured a forgettable 10-ball stay, being dropped by Umar Akmal at gully off the first ball he faced before being caught at second slip two overs later.
For the second successive Test against Pakistan, Ponting fell caught on the leg-side boundary, ungainly flicking a ball off his hip as the crowd watched in horror.
The shot reinforced concerns about how much Ponting is being hindered by his elbow injury.
Sami, in his first Test appearance for 25 months, narrowly missed having Shane Watson (6) lbw next ball to claim a hat-trick before removing the opener in the eighth over.
Watson was one of few Australian top order batsmen to be undone by a good ball rather than a poor shot on Sunday.
Asif then started gnawing his way through the lineup on his way to picking up career-best figures, using his probing swing bowling to steadily dislodge batsmen.
Michael Clarke (3) used the referral system to stay alive following a questionable LBW decision from umpire Asoka De Silva only to be bowled not long after between bat and pad by Asif.
Asif was also on a hat-trick after dismissing Hussey and Marcus North (10) in successive balls in the 22nd over as Australia plunged to 6-51.
Brad Haddin (6) tried to hit Australia out of trouble but was caught at cover off Asif’s bowling with the total at 7-62.
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