AUS vs PAK Boxing Day Test, Match Prediction

AUS vs PAK 2nd Test: The day after Christmas, 26th December can only mean one thing for cricket enthusiasts like me – the Boxing Day test at the MCG. It’s that time of the year when the Aussie public will throng into the Melbourne Cricket Ground in numbers to celebrate the beautiful game that has given us many fond memories.

It’s going to be a series clincher or series leveller when the hosts Australia takes on Pakistan in the 2nd test of the NRMA Insurance test series of the Benaud-Qadir trophy at the MCG, Melbourne, on December 26, 2023.

Match Details

Match Preview

After a crushing defeat of 360 runs at the hands of the hosts in the first test of the series at Perth, the Pakistani team will be hopeful for a quick turnaround in the upcoming 2nd test of the series at the MCG.

Injury woes

However, they already have received bad news: spinner Noman Ali and seamer Khurram Shahzad are both out of the series due to injuries. Khurram – who made his test debut at Perth in the 1st test will miss out due to a rib stress fracture while experienced Hasan Ali has been named as his replacement. Meanwhile, Mohammad Nawaz has been called as a replacement for Noman Ali who missed out due to the surgery he had undergone for acute appendicitis.

Changes in the 11 ?

After a crushing defeat, it is expected that changes will be made to the 11-member squad. Pakistan is preparing to play against the Aussies for the 2nd test at the MCG and has already announced a 12-member squad for the match. The squad includes some new names, while some players from the previous match have been left out. All-rounder Faheem Ashraf is among the players who will not be playing in the upcoming match.

The other change is that of the keeper batter Sarfraz Ahmed who had a poor outing in the 1st test with scores of 3 and 4. Mohammad Rizwan will replace him after scoring a free-flowing 50 in the recently concluded two-day practice match against Victoria held at the Junction Oval in St. Kilda.

Mir Hamza or Hasan Ali will be the likely replacements for Khurram Shahzad, both of them had a tough time against Victoria while going for runs at a high economy rate. Both of them might get a game in if they decide to replace Faheem with either of them or it could be Sajid Khan.

Woeful form

The biggest concern for Pakistan would be the record of their premier batter Babar Azam down under. Babar averages 26.1 from 12 innings in Australia, his lowest in any country where he has batted in more than two innings.

One of the main reasons why Pakistan struggled in Australia is the fact that their bowlers failed to pick up 20 wickets in tests. The last time that happened was in 2010, Sydney, means they have failed to pick 20 wickets in the last 7 tests played down under. This directly puts the spotlight on Shaheen and company to conjure some magic come the boxing Day test.

All is well for the hosts

In the meantime, the Australian cricket team can breathe a sigh of relief as their batsmen and bowlers put on a great performance in the first test against Pakistan. David Warner, who has an impressive record against Pakistan with six centuries and an average of 90, will be looking forward to adding more to his list in what is likely to be his last Boxing Day test and series. Other noteworthy performances from the Perth test include Mitch Marsh’s twin fifties, Usman Khawaja‘s 90 in the second innings, and a collective team effort from the bowlers.

AUS vs PAK 2nd Test MCG Pitch Report

The pitch report at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) for the 2nd test between Australia vs Pakistan as per the curator is it is going to be a well-grassed surface with good carry and bounce. It is not going to be as bouncy as the one we saw at Perth. Life has been tough for the batsman over the last few years at this MCG.

The grass covering was over 10mm for the previous boxing day test matches but it is trimmed down to 6-7mm for this year’s match. The pitch has been under cover for the past three days due to the abundant amount of rain. The weather forecast suggests that the first and second day of the test match will be interrupted by rain and it is going to be overcast. But things might change pretty quickly at the MCG.

In the 116 test matches played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), the team batting first won 56 matches and the team batting second won 42 test matches. The average 1st innings score is 307 runs, 2nd innings score is 313 runs. As the test match progresses it becomes tougher for the batters to score runs especially towards the end of day 3 and on day 4, 5 due to the cracks opening up.

AUS vs PAK H2H Records

Overall : Australia 35 wins, Pakistan 15 wins, 20 draws

Last 10 years : Australia leads 7-3 with 3 draws

In Australia : Australia leads 27-4 with 7 draws

It’s 15-0 for Australia in the last 15 tests held in their own backyard. Pakistan have only won twice in their last 10 matches at the MCG. In the past decade, Australia has won 6 matches, drawn 2 and lost 2 at the MCG.

AUS vs PAK 2nd Test Probable Playing XI

Australia : David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey(wk), Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins (C), Nathan Lyon and Hazelwood.

Pakistan : Abdullah Shafique, Imam-Ul-Haq, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Said Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Agha Salman, Hasan Ali/Sajid Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mir Hamza and Aamer Jamal

AUS vs PAK Match Prediction

The injuries to key players will definitely hurt Pakistan and they enter the boxing day test match against the mighty Australians as under dogs. Australia at home are undefeated in the past decade against the visitors. Based on the form of both the teams, we are predicting Australia to win the boxing day test match and clinch the series 2-0.