Daily Times

Australia’s quicks have saved their very best for Babar Azam. The man who started the tour carrying Pakistan’s best hopes of causing an upset this summer on his own bat is now in the biggest rut of his career.

Scores of 21, 14, one and 41 have summed up Babar’s tour, who is widely considered as Pakistan’s best batsmen of this generation. For the first time in his career, the 29-year-old has now gone 10 straight Test innings without passing 50.

But in his last four digs, Babar’s scores say as much about his own batting as they do the nature of Australia’s on-song bowling attack. So far on this tour, Babar has fallen victim to Australia’s best periods of bowling almost every time he has walked to the crease. His first dismissal to Mitch Marsh in Perth was not his best moment, caught behind pushing at one outside off stump.

Since then, Australia have been relentless against Babar. Pat Cummins set him up superbly in the second innings in WA, sending down 15 balls on a near-perfect nagging line and length before drawing Babar’s edge. Cummins’ effort to remove him in the first innings at the MCG was even better, jagging one back off the seam to take the top of middle and off stump.

Then it was Josh Hazlewood’s turn on Friday. Four straight balls landed within a 56cm patch of each other on a near-identical off-stump line. The fourth, a ball that moved back in, went straight through Babar’s bat and pad to clean up his stumps. Australia have exposed a flaw in the right-hander’s technique, with Ricky Ponting among those highlighting the limited movement of the Pakistan star’s front foot.

Already with a wide stance, Babar has been beaten on both the inside and outside edge when not fully committing to balls. But the execution has been pinpoint perfect, with their efforts against Pakistan’s former captain highlighting the very best of the relentless Australian attack. “It was the type of pitch where the balls was seaming in a fair bit,” Cummins said. “Both Josh’s and my strengths are probably (getting the) outside edge. So getting a few through the gate was pretty satisfying.”