6800 miles apart, two cities couldn’t be as contrasting as Brisbane and Karachi.One being the bustling metropolis and business hub of a nation struggling to envisage international cricket on its turf for the last seven years, whilst the other an architectural wonderland set amidst the Brisbane river.Whilst they differ in their background and culture,both cities do stage a passion for cricket and house fortresses of tests for their respective nations. Greenshirts have lost only twice at the National Stadium while the Gabba has seen the Kangaroos being unbeaten in the last 28 years. There’s also another aspect the two stadiums shared in the last week which was the hosting of day night cricket in the longer format with a pink ball.
WAPDA playing Habib Bank in a domestic day night final known as the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy in Karachi and Greenshirts taking on Aussies in Brisbane suburb of Woollongabba which means literally a “fight talk place”.There was irony in the fact the opening day of the final was dominated by Mohammad Asif’s right arm swing bowling taking 4 wickets. WAPDA being skippered by Salman Butt and Asif have recently returned to the domestic circuit following extensive bans served in the match fixing saga. And in Down Under , their younger counterpart who was part of the infamous trio Mohammad Amir was picking the pink ball up early to superb line and length and taking the crucial wicket of David Warner.
One of the main features of introducing the day night aspect has been the poor crowds in test format in majority of the cricketing nations.Whilst in Australia it has worked as a treat to boost the crowds firstly in Adelaide and now with Gabba following suit, sadly,in a domestic final back home, even the lights failed to attract the local fans with a handful attending each evening. What was more abysmal was lack of the basic needs for players especially in the post-Phil Hughes era when helmets are a necessity . There wasn’t an ambulance to take the injured to the hospital even. Nevertheless, on batting rich conditions ,WAPDA courtesy of their skipper’s twin tons ( 125 and 104*) facing and scoring the bulk of the deliveries went on to hold in adversity.Imam ul Haq, Inzie’s nephew scored a superb 200 in the second innings and tons from Fakhar Imam and Ahmad Shahzad took Habib bank to a mammoth total of 485.The controversial 1st innings rule applied and Salman and co would hang on on the final day batting it out to take the trophy.
Gabba saw Steve Smith’s first ton versus Greenshirt opposition and his 16th overall on day one and the lack of that body language was evident in the first and last hours of that day. Pakistan never have won a test at this partisan venue which had a pool erected in a section in place of seats to promote the fun. Aussies pounded on the score as missed chances by the keeper Sarfraz and then Amir proved costly.The hosts ‘s 429 included Peter Handscombe’s maiden ton and a last wicket stand of 49.
The visitors reply was poor as they lost a clatter of wickets in the night session reducing at one stage to 67/8 before Sarfraz with a 59 and Amir with a 21 restored some sanity into a score of 142. The quicks led by Mitchell Starc were on song and exploited the bounce well on a bouncy track.Aussies quickly batted a second time and accumulated 202 for five declaring. Usman Khawaja led with 74 and the skipper second time around made 63.
Facing the arduous task of 490,Greenshirts had ended on 70/2 on day 3 but it was late surge on evening no 4 on lights which attracted particular attention. Azhar’s 71 and Younis Khan on a poor reverse sweep dismissal had made 65.When Amir came to bat,the score was 220/6 and Aussies seem destined to end the night early. However he staved off a charge from Starc,Bird and Hazelwood in a quick fire 48 to provide huge support to Asad Shafiq who broke loose after getting in.His century, the first by a Greenshirt in the “Lucky Country” since Hobart 2010, was a gutsy knock , filled with classic square drives, hooks and cover strokes.Wahab added a valuable 30 and at 378 for seven, they were 112 adrift causing jitters in the home camp.The next day , it went even closer with only 41 left before Asad,who was adjudged man of the match for his fine 137 bounced off to Starc.Yasir was run out by Smith in slips and Aussies breathed a sigh of relief with their Gabba record intact and completed victory by 39 runs.The day nighter ended in the day for a change but what a test it proved to be.A memorable one !
The lights look here to stay whether the conditions are batting friendly or bowling conducive as both sides were witnessed at the Gabba.Australia already has hosted a test thrice.Kiwis also look interested in hosting one in the future.With a test in line for the next English summer versus West Indies and a possible Ashes one in Australia for next winter ‘s duel, it seems that Pink ball cricket has set a precedent.And whether its the “City of Lights” or “Brissie”, it will add colour indeed.
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