Shane Watson injured as Australia is thrashed by Pakistan in Twenty20
By Sam Lienert in Dubai
May 08, 2009
Another injury for fragile all-rounder Shane Watson capped a miserable night for Australia as they were thrashed by Pakistan in their Twenty20 clash in Dubai.
Paceman Umar Gul (4-8) took the second best figures in Twenty20 international history as Australia were skittled for 108, before Pakistan cruised to 3-109 in 16.2 overs.
The loss was Australia's third straight in the Twenty20 format, after two defeats in South Africa in March, worrying form ahead of June's World Twenty20.
Acting Australia captain Brad Haddin admitted that after Australia had been 0-42 from four overs, mainly due to Watson blasting 33 from 14 balls, everything fell apart.
"From that moment on we were totally outplayed for the remainder of the match," Haddin said.
"It looked like we didn't bring our game at all and we had half a foot on the plane."
The return from injury of speedster Brett Lee for his first game since last year's Boxing Day Test was the one shining light.
Watson, who returned to the Australia line-up for this tour after being out since last November with a back injury, had also been scheduled to return to bowling on Friday morning (EST).
But he strained his groin while batting and did not take the field.
The injury dashed Watson's plans to head to South Africa for an Indian Premier League stint. Instead he will fly home on Friday for rehabilitation.
But a Cricket Australia spokesman said team doctor Trefor James had assessed the injury as only a mild strain and it was not expected to cost Watson his World Twenty20 spot.
"It's disappointing for Shane, he's suffered a mild groin strain, he's going to go home for scans and be assessed from there," Haddin said.
Watson had opened the batting and clubbed six boundaries to help Australia to 0-42 after four overs.
His innings was cut short when umpire Aleem Dar incorrectly ruled him LBW from the first ball of the fifth over, bowled by Gul, when he got a thick inside edge.
Australia were still going well at 1-61 from seven overs before leg-spinner Shahid Afridi sparked a major collapse.
Afridi (3-14) dismissed James Hopes and Andrew Symonds, for a golden duck, with his first two balls then bowled David Hussey in his next over.
Off-spinner Shoaib Malik then took two quick wickets before Gul returned to take three more scalps, failing by one run to match New Zealander Mark Gillespie's record figures of 4-7, achieved against Kenya in the inaugural World Twenty20 in South Africa in 2007.
Lee opened the bowling for Australia and his first competitive delivery in more than four months was a quick one.
The 149km/h rocket flew off the top edge of Pakistan opener Salman Butt's bat, through the hands of first slip Marcus North to the third man boundary.
"I think it shocked the slips a bit just how quick it did come through, it was good to see," Haddin said.
"If you can take any positive out of tonight's game, it was good to see the return of Brett Lee and if tonight's any indication of how he's going to go it looks like he is going to come back with some pretty good pace."
His speed tailed off slightly through his spell, but he claimed the wicket of 17-year-old opener Ahmed Shehzad to pick up 1-22 from four overs.
But after Ben Hilfenhaus dismissed Butt, thanks to a brilliant reflex catch from Hopes, Kamran Akmal (59 not out from 42 balls) and Misbah-ul-Haq (24) ensured a Pakistan win, just as they had done in the final game of the preceding one-day series in Abu Dhabi.
Akmal's sweet-hitting innings included consecutive sixes off Hopes in the 14th over.
AAP
