A dogged Marnus Labuschagne weathered a storm to help steer Australia to 187-3 on a rain-affected opening day of the second Test in Melbourne on Tuesday against a probing and resilient Pakistan attack. At stumps he was unbeaten on an icy 44 from 120 balls and Travis Head was not out on nine after almost three hours of play was lost to rain. Pakistan's bowlers found plenty of exercise in the overcast conditions and were rewarded with the wickets of David Warner (38), Usman Khawaja (42) and Steve Smith (26).
But a patient Labuschagne was immovable as the hosts looked to seal the three-Test series after beating the visitors by 360 runs in Perth.
“It was a good day as a bowling unit but a bit unlucky not to have more wickets,” said Pakistan pacer Hasan Ali, who removed Khawaja.
“I think we're a bit ahead of them and we're looking forward to tomorrow.”
Pakistan captain Shan Masood won the toss and chose to play first on a pitch suitable for the seamers.
Led by Shaheen Shah Afridi, they bowled good length and found some early swing.
“(We are) okay. One less wicket would have been great, but it's a credit to the way Pakistan bowled. They bowled incredible channels,” Warner said.
“But I think we'll be in a pretty good position tomorrow. Anything with a four-up would be great, but it will be a tough task.”
Warner, who made 164 in the first innings at Perth in his farewell Test series, was dropped at two by Abdullah Shafique, who took a regular catch at second slip.
He was also lucky to get away with an edge sailing over the slips for a boundary on 17.
His luck ran out with a delivery from part-time spinner Agha Salman in the final over before lunch, with Babar Azam holding a catch as he slipped off a thick outside edge.
Survival mode
Warner's regular opening partner Khawaja is embroiled in a dispute with the International Cricket Council over how to draw attention to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
He was denied a bid to display a sticker showing a black dove holding an olive branch on his bat, and instead played with his daughters' names on his shoes.
The 37-year-old hit a boundary from the second ball he faced and looked destined for a big score before Ali, back in the team after being overlooked for Perth, pulled off a lead that Salman took well in the slips to save Australia to leave at 108-2.
With dark clouds overhead, the lights came on in mid-afternoon as Labuschagne and Smith were in survival mode as the bowlers turned the screws before the rain arrived.
Eventually conditions cleared and play resumed in front of a sparse crowd, with many of the 62,000 fans giving up and going home.
Smith and Labuschagne continued to play defensively, making it difficult to score points.
Labuschagne finally eased some pressure when Aamer Jamal was brought on and hit his first boundary in 75 balls, the grin on his face telling a story.
Things were just as slow for Smith, who was given out on 19 lbw after a loud shout from Afridi, but a review showed the ball went high.
Shortly afterwards he had less luck against Jamal. The umpire ignored a call from wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan for a catch, but Pakistan reviewed and it showed a tenuous lead, ending a 147-ball partnership.
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