Ponting double-ton pushes Australia to 519

Ricky Ponting's fifth Test double-century and Michael Clarke's highest Test score have left Pakistan facing a mountainous task to avoid defeat over the next three days in Hobart. Both men departed during the second session and a lower-order flurry got Australia to 8 for 519 before Ponting declared on the stroke of tea, when Mitchell Johnson skied a catch off Danish Kaneria.

The second day was just as successful for Australia as the first, although Marcus North's scratchy 21 was a concern and will not ease the questions over his place in the side ahead of March's tour of New Zealand. He was caught behind off Mohammad Asif after combining with Brad Haddin, who made a quick 41 from 34 balls, for a 55-run stand.

It paled in comparison to the 352-run partnership between Ponting and Clarke, which lasted 437 minutes and 626 balls, and was Australia's sixth-highest for any wicket in Test history. The stand ended when Clarke tried to pad up to Kaneria coming around the wicket but saw it take his off stump on 166.

Ponting's innings of 209 came to a close when he attacked in spite of Pakistan's defensive wide-outside-off line and skied a catch to cover off Mohammad Aamer. The captain Mohammad Yousuf took the chance, showing Aamer how it should be done after he put Ponting down at deep square-leg before he had scored on the first day.

Fans stood all around the ground to cheer off their local Tasmanian hero Ponting, who made his third-highest Test score and his first double-ton since January 2005, the first Test double-century by any player at Bellerive Oval, and the highest Test score by an Australian since Justin Langer's 215 in Adelaide against New Zealand five years ago. He picked up an even hundred runs in boundaries - 25 fours - in a near nine-hour stay at the crease.

Ponting was given another life today on 167 when he drove Kaneria and the ball flew through the hands of Imran Farhat at cover. But by that stage Australia were going for their shots and in truth, Clarke and Ponting were rarely troubled by a defensive Pakistan group that seemed simply to be waiting for a declaration.

Until right on tea, that decision didn't come from Ponting, who had declared early in Melbourne but here seemed intent on grinding Pakistan into the Bellerive turf. There are some showers forecast over the next three days, so Ponting must have supreme confidence in his attack.

Younis Khan returns for Australia ODIs

Younis Khan, the former Pakistan captain who took a break from international cricket in November while claiming he had "lost command" of the side, has been picked in a squad of 17 for the five-match ODI leg of the tour of Australia. However, Mohammad Yousuf will continue to lead the side with allrounder Shahid Afridi as his deputy.

Younis' resignation, following an ODI series defeat against New Zealand, came after months of reported unhappiness within the team over his leadership. He went underground immediately after, only to resurface suddenly while attending a PCB coaching course in Lahore and then turning out unimpressively on the domestic circuit. Subsequently there emerged a possibility that he may arrive in time for the ODI series.

Younis had been in contention for a place in the squad following Pakistan's disappointing batting display in the ongoing Test series, and Yousuf had requested him at the start of the tour to join the squad "as soon as possible".


Younis' form since his absence from the national team, though, has been poor. He managed just 11 runs in two innings for Habib Bank Limited in the Quaid-E-Azam Trophy final, and just 18 in his team's opening game of the Pentagular Cup in Karachi.


Kamran Akmal, after a torrid time behind the stumps in Sydney, has been retained and so has his replacement for the Hobart Test, Sarfraz Ahmed. Fast bowlers Rao Iftikhar and Naved-ul-Hasan, who didn't play the Tests, join the ODI squad. Batsman Khalid Latif, who has represented Pakistan in four ODIs, has also been called up.

Pakistan have also announced their squad for the sole Twenty20 international; Afridi will lead the side and the batting will be boosted by the inclusion of the attacking opener Imran Nazir.

ODI squad: Mohammad Yousuf (capt), Shahid Afridi (vice-capt), Umar Akmal, Imran Farhat, Fawad Alam, Kamran Akmal, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, Rao Iftikhar, Shoaib Malik, Khalid Latif, Mohammad Aamer, Naved-ul-Hasan, Sarfraz Ahmed, Salman Butt, Younis Khan, Mohammad Asif.

Twenty20 squad: Shahid Afridi (capt), Umar Akmal, Imran Farhat, Fawad Alam, Kamran Akmal, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, Rao Iftikhar, Shoaib Malik, Khalid Latif, Mohammad Aamer, Naved-ul-Hasan, Sarfraz Ahmed, Salman Butt, Rao Iftikhar, Imran Nazir, Mohammad Asif.

Pakistan ring in four changes

It is in dead rubbers that the basis of cricket as an individual sport becomes clearest. But for the grace of Pakistan everyone would've come to Hobart much happier; the series is gone and with it the prospect of a good end to summer. Now attention turns to personal battles of form and there is enough to this Test to keep it sprightly.


To Pakistan first and who would have thought dropping a wicketkeeper who dropped four chances in the last Test - and it wasn't a one-off - would be so difficult? Not least of the confusion surrounding l'affaire de Kamran, as it will now be remembered, has come from the Pakistan camp itself; just as coach Intikhab Alam was definitively ruling him out on Tuesday, Kamran Akmal, definitively, was ruling himself in to an Australian newspaper.

He was finally ruled out as Pakistan, surprisingly, announced their playing XI a day before the Test. But the matter has overshadowed a number of other issues, namely the continuing failures of Faisal Iqbal and Misbah-ul-Haq in the middle order. Changes have been made and Shoaib Malik and Khurram Manzoor are back in but sending back Fawad Alam, who represents a future - in whatever form and shape - was a poor choice. Mohammad Aamer is back as well to give Pakistan, finally, it's first-choice attack and that is something that just hasn't happened in recent years. In all, there will be enough new faces from Sydney so that Pakistan are likely to have a fresh, energetic feel to them. They will be keen to prevent a 12th successive loss and a fourth successive whitewash against this particular opponent.


Australia are far more settled. Such messes they don't often find themselves in and when they do, they are generally quieter and handle it with greater grace and coherence. Still, there are little niggling things that don't quite sit right about their line-up just yet.


A lack of runs from their middle order is chief among them. Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and Marcus North have two fifties each from six Tests this summer and the first two, at least, should be doing much more than that. Neither has looked particularly out of form, but that in itself can be a greater worry than being out of touch, as North appears to be. Some wickets for Peter Siddle would go down nicely as well, though his presence has never been a non-threatening one.

In the bigger picture this Test may not matter much, but within it there will be enough players for whom it matters a great deal and that makes for compelling viewing.
Form guide

Australia WWWDW
Pakistan LLDWL



Watch out for...

Shane Watson was the Test find of the year for Australia in 2009 and he started the new year in style with 97 at the SCG. In his five Tests this summer, Watson has collected 579 runs at 72.37. His quick scoring at the top of the order has been a key to Australia's positive results, even if scores of 96, 89, 93 and 97 have made him a tragi-comic figure. This will be Watson's first Test at Bellerive Oval, where he started his first-class career in 2000-01, and it was his home ground until he moved back to Queensland in 2004-05.


Who else but the wicketkeeper? Pakistan's handling of the Kamran Akmal/Sarfraz Ahmed issue has been abysmal and inept. On wicketkeeping form alone Akmal, who is 28 today, should have been dropped long ago, but his batting has kept him alive. Sarfraz is a safe keeper and though not as game-changing with the bat, he is no mug either, as success on an A tour to Australia last year proves. His debut tomorrow means it is the first time since October 2004 that anyone other than Akmal has put on the wicketkeeping gloves for Pakistan in a Test match.


Team news

The only change for Australia is the return of Simon Katich, who missed the Sydney Test with an elbow problem. Phillip Hughes flew home to Sydney on Tuesday, having been released from the squad, leaving Clint McKay to serve as 12th man for the fourth consecutive match. Marcus North retained his place despite struggling for form this summer.


Australia 1 Shane Watson, 2 Simon Katich, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Michael Hussey, 5 Michael Clarke, 6 Marcus North, 7 Brad Haddin (wk), 8 Mitchell Johnson, 9 Nathan Hauritz, 10 Peter Siddle, 11 Doug Bollinger.

Pakistan have made four changes to the line-up that imploded in Sydney. Misbah and Iqbal are out, with Malik and Manzoor the beneficiaries. Aamer is fit again and has replaced Mohammad Sami, and Sarfraz has come in for Akmal.

Pakistan 1 Imran Farhat, 2 Salman Butt, 3 Khurram Manzoor, 4 Mohammad Yousuf (capt), 5 Umar Akmal, 6 Shoaib Malik, 7 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 8 Mohammad Aamer, 9 Umar Gul, 10 Danish Kaneria, 11 Mohammad Asif


Pitch and conditions

Hobart is renowned as a swing bowler's paradise and if the conditions are overcast that is often the case. However, just as often there are big runs to be had and Ricky Ponting was expecting a surface on which his attack would have to work extra hard for their rewards. "It looks like a pretty good wicket now, a fair bit drier than it has been over the last couple of days," Ponting said. "As the state games have been this year, they've been pretty good batting wickets and it's been pretty hard to bowl sides out, so I'd imagine this might be the same." The first two days are likely to provide perfect, mild conditions but there could be showers over the final three days of the Test.


Stats and trivia

•It's 20 years since Bellerive Oval first hosted a Test but this is the first time the venue has had a Test in the post-Christmas period


•In eight Tests at the venue, Australia have won six and drawn two - they have never been beaten


•The ground hosted one of the most memorable Australian Tests in the modern era, when Adam Gilchrist and Justin Langer rescued Australia from 5 for 126 to chase down 369 against Pakistan in 1999-2000


•Faisal Iqbal, Pakistan's No.3, has scored more runs (97) in this series than his opposite number Ricky Ponting (80)


•Nathan Hauritz is the leading wicket-taker in the series so far with 12 wickets



Quotes

"What we have to do down here is not let them get back into the game like we let them start in Sydney. There's still a lot of mystery around about them."

Ricky Ponting on the riddle that is Pakistan

"There is no doubt that Sarfraz will play."
Intikhab Alam, Pakistan's coach, puts an end to all speculation regarding Pakistan's wicketkeeper in Hobart

Intikhab says Sarfraz will play

After days of confusion, Intikhab Alam has put an emphatic end to speculation surrounding Pakistan's wicketkeeping spot, saying that there is "no doubt" Sarfraz Ahmed will play as the wicketkeeper in Kamran Akmal's place in the third Test in Hobart starting on Thursday.

Speculation has been rife and silly since the Sydney Test about Akmal and his role in the Pakistan side. Reports emerged blaming his late-night babysitting for the four dropped catches at the SCG and there has been talk of his younger brother Umar pulling out of the third Test with an allegedly feigned back injury in protest at the axing.

The team was given a day off from practice today, but Umar and Sarfraz trained at the Bellerive Oval under the eyes of Intikhab and Aaqib Javed, the assistant coach. There will be a selection meeting the day before the Test begins but Intikhab indicated that if it comes to a vote with the four-man selection committee (Mohammad Yousuf, Akmal, Intikhab and manager Abdur Raquib form the panel), Akmal will step aside.

"Naturally he [Sarfraz] has been sent as a reinforcement," Intikhab said. "Unfortunately Kamran had a bad game and he is a very good wicketkeeper-batsman. It can happen to anyone but the fact of the matter is Sarfraz has been sent here and we will give a chance.
"It has happened in the past [a vice-captain having a vote on his own position in the side]. We were in Sri Lanka, the vice-captain was Misbah-ul-Haq and he wasn't having a good time and we decided in the meeting, at times you have to take that tough decision and we'll take that decision. And there is no doubt that Sarfraz will play.

"We have a three-member committee but this time the manager will also sit in. We're sure the right decision will be taken and he will have a vote as well. I have already spoken to Kamran and I think he understands. These things happen in cricket. I'm sure he's good enough and he'll come back."

Younger brother Umar had a longish net session, having sat out practice yesterday and woken up this morning to stories about the stiff back being merely a ploy to protest at the treatment of Kamran. Intikhab said the back was fine and talk of protest absolute rubbish.

"He is ok. He had a sore back. The last few days the guys have been working very, very hard, and so I gave them a day off today," Intikhab said. "Umar didn't practice yesterday, he was sent to hospital and had x-rays done and the doctors said there is nothing wrong with him. He has had one painkilling injection but that's why I brought him here to make sure he is fit and raring to go.

"It's [the stories of his protest] all rubbish. At times I laugh when I read such stories. He's one of the emerging cricketers in world cricket and he is capable and has the ability to do that. He is ok."

Training cheerily alongside Umar was Sarfraz, who having played eight ODIs in 2008, finally finds himself on the verge of a Test debut, the first man other than Akmal to don Pakistan's Test gloves since late 2004.

"Of course the pressure is there for representing your country against Australia," Sarfraz said. "But all the coaches, the manager and players have really supported me and told me to take no pressure and treat it like you are playing a normal first-class match."

Sarfraz was part of the same Pakistan A tour to Australia as Umar in June-July last year and had a similarly successful time, picking up 11 victims and three fifties in the two 'Tests'. And some advice had already come his way on conditions here, he said, from the man he is set to replace. "Kami supported me and said play your natural game. I arrived two days ago and he said no pressure. He told me about the pitch here, a little bounce and some break. He is a very good player no doubt and everyone goes through a bad patch. I will give my 100% for our team."

Akmal confident of keeping wicket in Hobart

Kamran Akmal, Pakistan's embattled wicketkeeper, has ruled out the possibility of playing in the Hobart Test as a batsman alone, and has insisted again that he is confident he will play. Akmal's position in the side has come under intense scrutiny after a dismal second Test in Sydney in which he dropped four catches and failed with the bat as Pakistan handed Australia a remarkable win that sealed the series.

The PCB immediately decided to fly out Sarfraz Ahmed as a replacement wicketkeeper and said that he will "participate" in the third Test beginning Thursday. The statement left scope for Akmal to come in as a specialist batsman in a faltering middle-order, but for the second day running, the Pakistan vice-captain has defied board directives, maintaining that he will play at Hobart, and do so as a wicketkeeper-batsman.

"I am very happy with being wicketkeeper-batsman, not only batsman," he said. "I have played for Pakistan as a wicketkeeper-batsman with pride, so hopefully I am playing a similar role."

However, Akmal said a final decision would be made by the tour selection committee. A routine meeting is due to be held the day before the Test to finalise the playing XI, but the debate within indicates the discord between the on-tour management and the board.

The matter is further complicated by the composition of the touring selection committee. As vice-captain, however, Akmal has a vote on the playing XI, alongside captain Mohammad Yousuf, coach Intikhab Alam and manager Abdur Raquib. Within that group it is believed that the decision on playing Akmal may reach a stalemate, in which case the captain is likely to prevail with a deciding vote. Given the backing that he has given Akmal all along, it means Yousuf could conceivably choose to continue with the wicketkeeper, and thus clash openly with the board.

"Definitely, I'm very keen I am playing in this Test match but it depends on the captain and coach and management," Akmal said. "I've worked very hard in the nets. I'm still positive and hopefully I will play well here. They will tell me or not in the next few days if I am playing.

"Nothing is on my mind as a batsman. I am playing as a wicketkeeper-batsman. Before the match there is a selection meeting and I will decide with the coach and captain if I'm playing or not."

A deal Pakistan dropped

BRAD Haddin's mentor Steve Rixon has revealed he offered to help coach besieged Pakistan gloveman Kamran Akmal, but was rejected because the Pakistan Cricket Board refused to pay a $5000 fee.

As the deflated tourists sent an SOS for deputy keeper Sarfraz Ahmed, it has been revealed former Pakistan coach, ex-Australian Test quick Geoff Lawson, was so concerned about Kamran's technical flaws he contacted Rixon in 2008.

The former Australian Test gloveman and Haddin's confidant agreed in principle to help Kamran, only to be knocked back when the PCB insisted it would not meet his asking price.

Lawson said the decision had returned to haunt Pakistan, which crashed to a shock second Test defeat last Wednesday after the keeper endured a nightmare, dropping four second-innings catches.

"I would have absolutely helped him," said Rixon, who played 13 Tests and is regarded as one of world cricket's finest keeping coaches.

" 'Henry' (Lawson) actually rang me when he was the Pakistan coach, believe it or not he tried to get me to do work with Kamran. But it didn't eventuate because the board was counting their pennies.

"At the time, I had ICL commitments in India, I wasn't far away and there was a window of opportunity for me to help Kamran, which I was more than happy to do.

"Look at the two keepers (Brad Haddin and Kamran) and their performances in that (Sydney) Test and it was the difference.

"Brad was great and if Kamran takes one of those four dropped catches, it's all over - Pakistan win the Test.

"I wasn't asking for much, it was petty, but for whatever reason the PCB didn't want a bar of it. They deserve everything they get."

A veteran of 48 Tests, Kamran is in danger of being axed for this week's third Test in Hobart, with Sarfraz, his deputy on last month's tour of New Zealand, having been summoned from Pakistan.

It has also emerged former Pakistan gloveman Rashid Latif advised the PCB last year to stand the keeper down for six months to lose weight and improve his skills.

Lawson fears Kamran will be made a whipping boy in Pakistan and urged the tourists to call on Rixon to help the 28-year-old.

"I actually think the kid can be a good keeper," Lawson said.

"I can imagine the papers in Karachi would be slicing Kamran up because he's from Lahore and they would be pushing their local product.

"Sometimes it doesn't take much to get a guy back to form but you need the right coaches to do it.

"The PCB didn't want to invest in Kamran and it's cost them a Test match and the series."

PCB consulting with Afridi for T20 matches

LAHORE: The selection committee of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has started consultations with national T20 captain Shahid Afridi for the Twenty20 Internationals to be played against Australia and England.

PCB selection committee chairman Iqbal Qasim told Geo News that the consideration of names of players for the T20 matches against Australia and England has been started and T20 team captain Shahid Khan Afridi has been contacted on telephone in this regard.

Shahid Afridi is playing domestic cricket in Australia these days.

Pakistan will play their only T20 match on the tour of Australia on February 5 at Melbourne while they will play two T20 matches against England in Dubai on February 19 and 20.

Pakistan cricket needs young blood, says Wasim

LAHORE: Former Pakistan captain and legendry pacer Wasim Akram has said that Pakistan lost the second Test against Australia in Sydney because of scare of defeat and urged the selectors to induct new blood in the team. In an exclusive interview with Deutsche Welle Urdu Service, Wasim, before leaving for India, said that in order to win Test matches against powerful teams one needed special talent, skill, passion and mental fitness. The present Pakistan side lacks these traits. Unlike Twenty20 and one-dayers, Test cricket is like a long race,” he added.

Wasim suggested that cricket authorities of the country should give chance to new players after consistent failure of the senior players. “When the seniors are creating problems for the team and getting out after making only few runs then why not include younger players as they will learn in a year and serve the country for at least two decades. And for this purpose, captain, cricket board and selectors must sit together, communicate and plan. But, unfortunately, I can’t see that happening.”

Due to security problems and foreign teams’ refusal to play in Pakistan, Pakistan hosted only one complete Test match in the last 27 months and according to Wasim playing away from home and lack of Test cricket was also one of the reasons of Sydney debacle. “They have played very few Test matches especially on the home soil and that’s why players are short of confidence,” maintained Wasim, who claimed 916 wickets in both forms of the game.

Defending skipper Mohammad Yousuf defensive moves on the decisive day of the Sydney Test, Wasim said no body was born a leader. “Yousuf is an inexperienced captain and made few mistakes. But he will learn art of captaincy in the long run.” Wasim said coaches Intikhab Alam, Waqar Younus and Aaqib Javed should have told Yousuf when he was getting too defensive and what mistakes he was making. About wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal lapses, Wasim said Kamran was a wonderful and talented cricketer. “Last year his wicketkeeping seemed to be improving but he had a bad day at Sydney. Hopefully, he will work hard more because Pakistan team needs players like Kamran.”

Commenting on Pakistan’s domestic cricket structure, Wasim said Pakistan had experienced regional system that was not successful because one cannot have control over regions. “Even players were deprived of their money which perhaps goes to officials. On the other hand, departments groom players by giving them jobs and players are more relaxed. But over all its a tough call for the cricket board and requires a lot of time for introducing a new domestic system and no one has time for this in this country.” Wasim advised the PCB to hold day-night one-day and Twenty20 domestic matches to keep things going and attract people in stadiums. Wasim Akram urged both India and Pakistan to hold a Test series. “Indo-Pak Test series is imperative because these matches not only generate revenue but also interest on both sides of the border,” he concluded.

Confusion hovers over Kamran Akmal

In the aftermath of Sydney, confusion. As Pakistan look ahead to the third Test in Hobart, contradictory noises are being made over the future of under-fire wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal.

After the loss at the SCG, in which Akmal dropped four catches, an incensed PCB sent Sarfraz Ahmed as a replacement from Pakistan, insisting in a strongly-worded statement that he "will participate" in the Hobart Test.

Akmal, however, has said that he is expecting to keep his place, as reports emerge that he has the backing of a number of players within the side, including possibly the captain, Mohammad Yousuf. "I was very successful with my batting and wicketkeeping on the New Zealand tour and before the New Zealand tour. So I was very happy,'' Akmal was quoted as saying in Hobart by AAP.

"But I think the third day of the Sydney Test match was not good for me - this happens. I'm very keen. My confidence is very high. Management is very confident for me and coaches, Intikhab Alam, Waqar Younis, Aqib Javed, and my team-mates also. I will play the third Test match and more matches for my country."

During and after the loss in Sydney Yousuf resisted talk of dropping Akmal, maintaining that a player of his record cannot so easily be dropped from the side. Akmal is vice-captain of the side and a popular member within the team. If there is even talk of retaining him - let alone if he is eventually retained - it seems to place the touring team management on a direct crash course with the board back home.

The situation between the two sides has anyway been poor on this tour; persistent calls by Yousuf for Younis Khan to be sent to strengthen the batting almost from the moment the tour started fell on deaf ears, the selection committee in Pakistan first delaying and finally turning down the request.

But at least two members of the on-tour selection committee say that Akmal will not play in Hobart. "They have sent Sarfraz all the way here for what if not to play?" one told Cricinfo. "Akmal will not play the third Test." As ever with Pakistan and its many power centres that is unlikely to be the last word on the matter.

Akmal's younger brother Umar, who has impressed and infuriated in equal doses so far on the tour, pulled up at training with a stiff back. Management remain confident that he will be fine for the Test, due to begin on January 14. Mohammad Aamer, who missed the second Test with a groin complaint, has also been training and is said to be progressing well, making it likelier still that Pakistan may finally be able to field their first-choice attack in Hobart at the third time of asking.

'We can compete with any side' - Mohammad Yousuf

Pakistan will hope to pick up the pieces from the traumatic Sydney defeat as they build-up to what will now be a dead rubber at Hobart, where the best they can do is avoid a fourth successive whitewash at the hands of Australia.

The squad has taken the 36-run loss hard and Mohammad Yousuf, the captain, has been trying since to lift the side for the final Test, which begins on January 14. "The team was very, very disappointed after Sydney," Yousuf told Cricinfo.

"But as I told them after the Melbourne loss, we have to see that we continue to play good cricket. We could and should have won at Sydney but we didn't. Few people thought that we could match Australia before we came on this tour, but we played very well here for three days and had one very poor day."

The comments would seem to reinforce what has been the main criticism of Pakistan on this tour; that the side hasn't believed at any point they could challenge and topple Australia. The opening days of the Boxing Day Test and the last at the SCG were particularly illuminating, when Pakistan veered between timidity and blind panic.

Reaction in Pakistan has been predictably harsh, which also reveals how eagerly this series was being followed. Jamshed Dasti, head of the national assembly's committee on sports, has been at the forefront of the backlash, asking with force once again for the ouster of the PCB chief Ijaz Butt. This time there might be enough momentum building for it to result in something.

A number of ex-players, as expected, have not held back, asking for the heads of Yousuf, coach Intikhab Alam, the selection committee and a number of other players. "I think we can expect the criticism," Yousuf said. "I'm not saying don't criticise us but maybe it should be more constructive and it should also highlight the positives that have come out from the Test series as a whole."

Changes are expected in the Test side for Hobart and one is guaranteed. In an unusual move indicative of just how seriously they are viewing the loss, the PCB has issued a release stating that Sarfraz Ahmed is not only flying out to Australia, he will also be keeping wickets in the third Test ahead of Kamran Akmal.

The positions of Faisal Iqbal and Misbah-ul-Haq will also come under intense scrutiny; they have one fifty between them in four innings here. However, the paucity of Pakistan's batting resources is such that they will most likely be replaced by Khurram Manzoor and Shoaib Malik, both of whom were dropped halfway through the New Zealand tour. Questions will be asked about why Fawad Alam was so hastily sent back and not tried after one Test failure in New Zealand; that came two Tests after a debut hundred as an opener, a position he had never played in before.

"We have to look at the positives as we get ready for Hobart," Yousuf said. "Nobody can say whether we will win or lose but we just have to play good cricket for the entire duration. We had our moments in the first Test, where we fought hard. We did well for three days in Sydney. I think the positives are that we know we can compete with any side in the world.

"We now need to learn from our mistakes because if we do then we can beat any side out there."