Revisiting iconic World Cup matches between Pakistan and Australia
Team Pakistan will be up against Australia in Match 18 of the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup. The M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru will host the match on October 20 (2:00pm IST). The Men in Green lost to India after claiming victories in their first two matches. Australia have a solitary win in three games. Here we decode their best WC duels.
A look at the head-to-head record
The two sides have locked horns 107 times in ODI cricket and the Men in Yellow have dominated most fixtures. The head-to-head record reads 69-34 in Australia's favor. While one of their matches ended in a tie, three clashes got washed out. Pakistan have four wins and six defeats against the Aussies in ODI World Cups.
The 1987 semi-final in Lahore
It was the first semi-final of the 1987 World Cup with Lahore being the venue. Riding on David Boon's crucial 65, the Aussies finished at 267/8 in their 50 overs. In reply, Pakistan lost three early wickets before Javed Miandad and skipper Imran Khan stitched a century stand. However, Craig McDermott's five-wicket haul meant the Aussies won by 18 runs.
The thriller in Leeds, 1999
Inzamam-ul-Haq bailed Pakistan out of trouble with a remarkable 81-run knock as the Men in Green posted 275/8 while batting first against the Aussies in the 1999 WC game in Leeds. In reply, four Aussie batters scored over 40 but only Michael Bevan (61) could get a fifty. Wasim Akram claimed four wickets as Pakistan narrowly won by 10 runs.
When Pakistan broke Australia's streak, 2011
Australia's streak of 27 WC wins on the trot ended in 2011 as Pakistan defeated them by four wickets in Colombo. Umar Gul and Abdul Razzaq shared five wickets as the Aussies were folded for 176 while batting first. Pakistan's chase was far from smooth as Brett Lee claimed four wickets. However, they eventually crossed the line thanks to Umar Akmal's 44*.
The Riaz-Watson face-off in 2015
The 2015 WC quarter-final clash between Pakistan and Australia is mostly remembered for the face-off between Wahab Riaz and Shane Watson. The former was a menace that day as he clocked over 150 KPH for fun. However, the 214-run target in Adelaide never seemed enough against the Aussies. Sixties from Steve Smith and Watson powered Australia to a comfortable six-wicket win.
