Hobart: Marcus Stoinis, the versatile all-rounder, delivered a remarkable performance, contributing a fifty that led Australia to a clean sweep victory over Pakistan in the three-match T20I series, which commenced on Monday.
Stoinis showcased his exceptional skills by scoring an unbeaten knock of 61 runs in just 27 balls, which was further enhanced by five boundaries and maximums.
In the third match of the series, Australia emerged victorious by seven wickets, with Stoinis being recognized as the Player of the Match for his outstanding contribution.
Facing a modest total of 118 runs, the Australian openers, Matthew Short and Jake Fraser-McGurk, initiated the chase. The duo managed to add 16 runs before Short was dismissed by left-arm spinner Shaheen Afridi, who had taken two wickets in the match.
Following Short's dismissal, team captain Josh Inglis and Jake Fraser-McGurk returned to the field.
At the score of 30, Australia lost their second wicket in the fourth over, with Fraser-McGurk being dismissed for 18 runs from 11 balls, including four fours.
Stoinis was next in the batting order. The Josh Inglis-led team reached the 50-run mark in the eighth over of the innings.
The third wicket to fall was that of Inglis. The wicketkeeper-batter scored 27 runs in 24 balls, including four boundaries, before being dismissed when the team score was 85 in the 10th over.
Tim David was the next batsman to come out.
The hosts surpassed the 100-run mark in the 11th over of the innings.
Australia clinched the match on the first ball of the 12th over, with Stoinis and Tim David building an unbeaten partnership of 33 runs off just 10 balls, securing their victory.
For the Men in Green, the opposition managed to take one wicket each from Shaheen Afridi (1/43 in 4 overs), Jahandad Khan (1/17 in 3 overs), and Abbas Afridi (1/14 in 1.2 overs).
Earlier in the day, Pakistan's substitute captain, Agha Salman, won the toss and chose to bat first.
Batting first, the visitors were able to score just 117 runs in 18.1 overs before being dismissed.
Babar Azam (41 runs from 28 balls, including four fours), Haseebullah Khan (24 runs from 19 balls, with three boundaries), Shaheen Afridi (16 runs from 12 balls, including two fours and one six), and Irfan Khan (10 runs from 8 balls, with one four) emerged as the primary contributors.
The Australian team selected Aaron Hardie as their leading bowler, who achieved three wickets in his four overs with a total of 21 runs conceded, including a maiden over. Adam Zampa and Spencer Johnson each took two wickets, with Zampa achieving 2/11 in four overs and Johnson 2/24 in three overs. Xavier Barlett and Nathan Ellis each secured one wicket, with Barlett achieving 1/25 in three overs and Ellis 1/20 in three overs.
Australia emerged victorious in the preceding two T20I matches against Pakistan, which were conducted last week.
Brief Score: Pakistan 117 (Babar Azam 41, Haseebullah Khan 24; Aaron Hardie 3/21) vs Australia 118/3 (Marcus Stoinis 61*, Josh Inglis 27; Abbas Afridi 1/14).
