Pakistan first met Australia on a cricket field in a solitary Test match played at the National Stadium Karachi in October 1956, a match that Pakistan unexpectedly won. Over the years a total of 25 Test series have been played between the two countries with Pakistan winning 7, Australia prevailing in 13, and 5 being drawn. A total of 66 Tests, 194 ODIs and 24 T20 Internationals have been contested between the two sides.

ODIs

Played 104

Won by Pakistan 32

Won by Australia 68

Tied 1

No Result 3

T20 Internationals

Played 24

Won by Pakistan 13 (including one on tie-breaker)

Won by Australia 10

No Result 1

The 65 year saga of Test matches between Pakistan and Australia makes interesting reading. The first match at Karachi is largely remembered for an outstanding bowling performance by Fazal Mahmood. He was almost unplayable on the matting wicket provided for the match and took 13 wickets for 114 runs as Pakistan won by 9 wickets, after having dismissed Australia for only 80 in their first innings. Sixty five years later there are still two survivors from this inaugural Test. Neil Harvey of Australia, a gifted left handed batsman and a brilliant fielder, is now 93 years and 149 days old, while Wazir Mohammad, one of the famous Mohammad brothers, whose knock of 67 was instrumental in setting up Pakistan's victory, is 92 years and 74 days old today.

Australia gained revenge for their defeat on their next visit to Pakistan in 1959, when they won the three Test series 2-0, with superb batting performances by Neil Harvey and Norman O'Neil. The final Test at Karachi was watched by the US President Dwight Eisenhower and during it the Australian captain Richie Benaud persuaded Pakistan's President Ayub Khan to abandon matting wickets and replace them with turf surfaces for all future Tests in Pakistan.

Solitary Tests in Karachi and Melbourne were the only encounters between the two countries in the 1960s and the next major series was Pakistan's tour of Australia in 1972-3. Though Pakistan lost the series 3-0, they were in a commanding position in each of the last two Tests and could have won both. In the 2nd Test at Melbourne they squandered a first innings lead of 133 and fell 92 runs short when chasing a target of 293 on a placid batsman's wicket, where 1440 runs had been scored in the first three innings. In the 3rd Test at Sydney they fared even worse, being dismissed for just 106 in pursuit of a modest winning target of 159.

The next series was another tour down under by Pakistan in 1976-77. It was in this series that Pakistan won their first Test on Australian soil, prevailing in the 3rd Test at Sydney by 8 wickets. This was largely due to an outstanding fast bowling performance by Imran Khan who took 12 for 165 in the match and announced his arrival on the scene as one of the premium pace bowlers of his time. The series was drawn 1-1. Pakistan's next tour in 1978-79 had a similar outcome and cricket fans remember it for one of the most unusual bowling performances ever seen on a cricket field. In the first Test at Melbourne, Australia chasing a target of 382 to win were comfortably placed at 305 for 3 and appeared to be coasting to victory before an extraordinary display of swing and seam bowling from Sarfaraz Nawaz. He took seven wickets for just one run in the space of thirty deliveries and reduced Australia to 310 all out, leaving Pakistan winners by 71 runs.

The 1980s saw frequent exchange visits between Pakistan and Australia. A total of five series were played with Pakistan winning the three staged in Pakistan and Australia winning the other two series on their home soil. Out of 17 Tests matches Pakistan were triumphant in 6, Australia won 4 and the remaining 7 were drawn. The 1980 series in Pakistan, which the home side won, was also notable for Alan Border's unique achievement of 150 run knocks in each innings of the third Test, and outstanding bowling by the Pakistani spinners, especially Iqbal Qasim. Australia's 2-1 home triumph in the 1981-82 series included an innings by Pakistan of 500/8 declared in the 3rd Test at Melbourne which Pakistan won. This was, at the time, only the second occasion in Test cricket history when a side had scored 500 runs or more in an innings without a single centurion.

Led by their flamboyant leg spinner Abdul Qadir, Pakistan whitewashed Australia 3-0 in 1982-83, only for Australia to respond with an emphatic 2-0 win in 1983-84, that included an awesome batting display, with innings scores of over 500 in two of the Tests and over 400 in each of the remaining three. The decade ended with a narrow 1-0 win for Pakistan in 1989 in a series in which their captain Javed Miandad scored over 400 runs.

The 1990s also saw five series played between the two sides. Pakistan won just one while Australia prevailed in the other four. Of the 15 Tests contested in this decade, Pakistan won 2, Australia succeeded in 7 and 6 were drawn. Australia began with a narrow 1-0 victory in a home rubber in 1990. This was followed by their much publicized tour of Pakistan in 1994. In a surreal opening Test at Karachi some Australian players accused the Pakistani captain Saleem Malik of asking them to throw the match, an allegation which Saleem hotly denied. Trailing by 81 runs in the first innings Pakistan needed 314 for victory in their second innings. At 258 for 9 the match seemed done and dusted, but then Inzamam ul Haq and Mushtaq Ahmed put together an extraordinary last wicket stand of 57 to see Pakistan home. The coup d'etat was delivered when the Australian wicketkeeper Ian Healy missed an easy stumping chance against Inzamam in the final over, allowing the ball to go between his legs for four winning byes. Pakistan won the series 1-0 with Saleem Malik scoring a record 557 runs in the series.

In the 1995-96 away series Pakistan succumbed to the Australian pace-spin duo of Glen McGrath and Shane Warne. They also lost in the home series of 1998, whose hallmark was a remarkable knock of 334 not out by the Australian skipper Mark Taylor in the second Test at Peshawar. This equaled Don Bradman's mark, for what was at the time the highest score by any Australian batsman. As the story goes, Taylor declared the innings at this point, choosing not to overtake the great Don. Australia's victory in the 1st Test of this series in Rawalpindi was their first win on Pakistani soil in almost 39 years.

The final series of the decade in 1999, resulted in Australia whitewashing Pakistan 3-0 at home. However, Pakistan should have won the second Test at Hobart, which they inexplicably let slip from their grasp. Needing 369 to win, Australia were precariously perched at 126 for 5, before a brilliant, attacking 238 runs partnership, in just over four hours, between Justin Langer and Adam Gilchrist, took them to victory. The partnership was not without controversy though, as Pakistan were confident that they had Langer out caught behind when he was 76 and the score 237. Langer has subsequently confessed in his autobiography that had in fact edged the ball.

This millennium, Pakistan and Australia have met in eight Test series. Four of them have been in Australia, and each one has resulted in a complete whitewash victory for the hosts, with Pakistan losing all eleven Tests that they have played down under. The remaining four series have all been staged at neutral venues. The first neutral venue series, in 2002, involved two Tests in the UAE and one in Sri Lanka and was comprehensively won 3-0 by Australia, with Shane Warne being the destroyer in chief, taking 27 wickets at 12.66 runs apiece. The next neutral venue series was hosted in England and the honours were shared 1-1 between the two sides.

The last two neutral venue series were both held in the UAE and Pakistan won the pair. In 2014 they triumphed 2-0 in a two match series with a glut of centuries to bolster their display. In the 1st Test at Abu Dhabi both Azhar Ali and Misbah-ul-Haq hit a century in each innings. During his second innings Misbah also scored the fastest fifty in Test cricket and equaled Viv Richards record of the fastest Test century. In the 2nd Test at Dubai, Younis Khan, too, recorded a century in each innings, making Pakistan the only country in the annals of Test cricket to score three twin Test centuries in a single series, and that too in one that was limited to just two Tests. The 2018 series in the UAE was also won by Pakistan who prevailed 1-0 in the two-Test encounter.

With the advent of the shorter versions of the game, international cricket now has three established formats, namely Tests, ODIs and T20 Internationals. Statistical highlights of the Pakistan-Australia rivalry, across all three formats, may be of interest to cricket lovers on the eve of the latest round of another cricketing battle between these two teams.

Highest Test Innings Totals

Three totals of over 600 and twenty innings scores of over 500 have been recorded in Tests between the two countries. The breakdown of the highest innings score is as follows:

a) Highest Test Innings Score in Pakistan

Pakistan 580/9 declared, at Peshawar, 1998

Australia 617 at Faisalabad, 1980

b) Highest Test Innings Score in Australia

Pakistan 624, at Adelaide, 1983

Australia 624/8 declared, at Melbourne, 2016

c) Highest Test Innings Score at Neutral Venue

Pakistan 570/6 declared, at Abu Dhabi, 2014

Australia 444 at Sharjah, 2002

Interestingly, apart from their home countries, Pakistan and Australia have played Test matches in three neutral countries as well, namely the UAE, Sri Lanka and England, a very unusual occurrence.

Highest ODI Score

A total of thirteen scores of more than 300 have been registered in Pakistan-Australia ODI contests. The best for each team is :

Pakistan 315/8 at Lahore, 1998

Australia 369/7 at Adelaide, 2017

Highest T20 International Score

Neither side has yet crossed the 200 run mark in T20 Internationals though on six occasions a score in the 190's has been recorded. The best performance for each side is :

Pakistan 194/7 at Harare, 2018 (Triangular Tournament)

Australia 197/7 at St.Lucia, 2010 (T20 World Cup)

Lowest Test Innings Score

Seven scores of under 100 have been recorded in Tests between the two countries, The lowest innings scores registered at different venues are as under:

a) Lowest Test Innings Score in Pakistan

Pakistan 134 at Dhaka, 1959 (Dhaka was in Pakistan then)

Australia 80 at Karachi, 1956

b) Lowest Test Innings Score in Australia

Pakistan 62 at Perth, 1981

Australia 125 at Melbourne, 1981

c) Lowest Test Innings Score at Neutral Venue

Pakistan 53 at Sharjah, 2002

Australia 88 at Leeds, 2010

Lowest ODI Score

There are ten instances of one or the other side being dismissed for under 150 in an ODI. The lowest for each country is :

Pakistan 108 at Nairobi, 2002

Australia 120 at Hobart, 1997

Lowest T20 International Score

Pakistan 74 at Dubai, 2012

Australia 89 at Dubai, 2012

Largest Victories in Tests

a) By an innings

Pakistan by an innings and 188 runs at Karachi, 1988

Australia by an innings and 198 runs at Sharjah, 2002

b) By runs

Pakistan by 373 runs at Abu Dhabi 2018

Australia by 491 runs at Perth 2004

c) By wickets

Pakistan by 9 wickets at Karachi, 1956, Karachi 1982, and Lahore 1982

Australia by 10 wickets at Brisbane 1981, Sydney 1984, and Brisbane 1999

Largest Victories in ODI's

a) By runs

Pakistan by 91 runs at Brisbane 2002

Australia by 224 runs at Nairobi 2002

b) By wickets

Pakistan by 9 wickets at Rawalpindi, 1994

Australia by 9 wickets at Adelaide 1988, Lords 2001, Nairobi 2002, and Sydney 2005

Largest Victories in T20 Internationals

a) By runs

Pakistan by 66 runs at Abu Dhabi, 2018

Australia by 94 runs at Dubai, 2012

b) By wickets

Pakistan by 7 wickets at Dubai, 2009 and Dubai 2012

Australia by 10 wickets at Perth 2019

Narrowest Victories in Tests

a) By runs

Pakistan by 71 runs at Melbourne, 1979

Australia by 36 runs at Sydney, 2010

b) By wickets

Pakistan by 1 wicket at Karachi, 1994

Australia by 4 wickets at Hobart, 1999

Narrowest Victories in ODI's

a) By Runs

Pakistan by 2 runs at Sydney, 1990

Australia by 1 run at Abu Dhabi, 2014

b) By wickets

Pakistan by 1 wicket at Perth, 1987

Australia by 2 wickets at Johannesburg 2009 and Perth 2010

Narrowest Victories in T20 Internationals

a) By runs

Pakistan by 11 runs at Birmingham, 2010

Australia by 2 runs at Melbourne, 2010

b) By wickets

Pakistan by 6 wickets at Johannesburg, 2007

Australia by 3 wickets at St.Lucia, 2010

Batsmen with over 1400 runs in Pakistan-Australia Tests

Javed Miandad 1797 runs, average 44.09, 6 centuries

Alan Border 1666 runs, average 59.50, 6 centuries

Greg Chappell 1581 runs, average 63.24, 6 centuries

Ricky Ponting 1537 runs, average 66.82, 5 centuries

Zaheer Abbas 1411 runs, average 44.09, 2 centuries

Batsmen with over 1000 runs in Pakistan-Australia ODI's

Ricky Ponting 1107 runs

Javed Miandad 1019 runs

Mohammad Yousuf 1016 runs

Steve Waugh 1003 runs

Batsmen with over 500 runs in a Pakistan-Australia Test series

Salem Malik 557 runs, average 92.83, 1994-95*

Graham Yallop 554 runs, average 92.33, 1983-84**

Mark Taylor 513 runs, average 128.25, 1998-99*

* 3 Test series

** 5 Test series

Batsmen with the highest Test scores

a) Pakistan

Saleem Malik 237 at Rawalpindi 1994

Younis Khan 213 at Abu Dhabi 2014

b) Australia

David Warner 335 not out at Adelaide 2019

Mark Taylor 334 not out at Peshawar 1998

Batsmen with the highest ODI scores

a) Pakistan

Haris Sohail 130 at Dubai 2019

b) Australia

David Warner 179 at Adelaide 2017

Batsmen with the highest scores in T20 Internationals

a) Pakistan

Umar Akmal 94 at Mirpur 2014

b) Australia

Shane Watson 81 at St. Lucia 2010

Bowlers with over 60 wickets in Pakistan-Australia Tests

Shane Warne 90 wickets, average 20.17

Glen McGrath 80 wickets, average 21.70

Denis Lillee 71 wickets, average 30.43

Imran Khan 64 wickets, average 24.96

Bowlers with over 40 wickets in Pakistan-Australia ODI's

Wasim Akram 67 wickets, average 27.43

Glenn McGrath 57 wickets, average 19.10

Shahid Afridi 49 wickets, average 32.44

Best bowling figures in a Test innings

Sarfaraz Nawaz 9/86 at Melbourne, 1979

Glen McGrath 8/24 at Perth, 2014

Ashley Mallet 8/59 at Adelaide, 1972

Best bowling figures in a Test match

Fazal Mahmood 13/114 at Karachi, 1956

Imran Khan 12/165 at Sydney, 1977

Shane Warne 11/77 at Brisbane 1995

Best bowling figures in an ODI

Shahid Afridi 6/38 at Dubai, 2009

Waqar Younis 6/59 at Nottingham, 2001

Carl Rackemann 5/16 at Adelaide, 1984

Ryan Harris 5/19 at Perth, 2010

Most wickets in a series

Shane Warne 27 wickets, average 12.66, 2002-03*

Geoff Lawson 24 wickets, average 24.16, 1983-84**

Abdul Qadir 22 wickets, average 25.54, 1982-83*

* 3 Test series

** 5 Test series

Wicketkeepers with most Test dismissals

Rodney Marsh 68

Wasim Bari 66

Wicketkeepers with most ODI dismissals

Adam Gilchrist 44

Ian Healy 39

Brian Hardin 37

Moin Khan 25

Cricket may not be Pakistan's national game but it is certainly our national obsession. Nothing unites our country like cheering for eleven men with green caps, involved in a keen contest on a cricket field against a worthy opponent. After a prolonged hiatus of almost 24 years we are hosting Australia, one of the traditional powerhouses of international cricket. We have much to prove and gain from this contest and in homes across the country millions will be hoping that Pakistan adds further honours and glory to the backdrop that we have presented for this series.

– Dr Salman Faridi is a senior surgeon, poet, sports aficionado and an avid reader with a private collection of over 7000 books.

salmanfaridilnh@hotmail.com