Arafat Minhas creates history as Pakistan beat Australia in landmark 1,000th ODI

RAWALPINDI: Pakistan marked their 1,000th One-Day International in style, defeating Australia by five wickets in the opening ODI of the three-match series at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Saturday, with young spinner Arafat Minhas producing a record-breaking debut performance.

The 21-year-old left-arm spinner etched his name into Pakistan cricket history by becoming the first home bowler to claim a five-wicket haul on ODI debut. Minhas returned outstanding figures of 5-32, spearheading Australia’s collapse to 200 all out in 44.1 overs on a dry, spin-friendly surface.

Pakistan’s spin attack dominated throughout the innings, accounting for eight of Australia’s ten wickets. Alongside Minhas, Abrar Ahmed chipped in with 2-44 as the hosts outclassed Australia’s inexperienced batting lineup.

After being asked to bat first, Australia recovered from early setbacks through Matthew Short and Matthew Renshaw. Short struck 55 from 76 deliveries, while Renshaw registered a career-best 61 off 63 balls. The pair shared a valuable 55-run partnership for the fifth wicket after Australia had slipped to 68-4.

However, Minhas proved too difficult to handle. He removed stand-in captain Josh Inglis and Marnus Labuschagne in the same over before dismissing Cameron Green for a first-ball duck. He later broke the crucial partnership between Short and Renshaw and completed his memorable five-wicket haul with the wicket of Nathan Ellis.

Chasing a modest target of 201, Pakistan lost Sahibzada Farhan (28) and Maaz Sadaqat (8) early, but former captain Babar Azam and emerging batter Ghazi Ghori steadied the innings with a match-defining 127-run stand for the third wicket.

Babar anchored the chase with a composed 69 off 94 balls, hitting four boundaries and a six, while Ghori impressed with a fluent 65 from 92 deliveries, including eight fours. Although Nathan Ellis removed both batters late in the innings, Pakistan were already in complete control.

Fittingly, it was the debutant hero Minhas who sealed victory, launching a six to complete the chase with 45 balls to spare and cap a dream ODI debut.

Australia entered the series without several senior stars, including captain Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Travis Head, but Pakistan’s clinical performance ensured there would be no upset in their historic milestone match.

The remaining two ODIs of the series will be played in Lahore on Tuesday and Thursday.