Lunch Australia 318 and 6 for 2 lead Pakistan 264 (Shafique 62, Masood 54, Rizwan 42, Cummins 5-48, Lyon 4-73) by 60 runs
Trailing by 54 runs in the first innings, Pakistan responded on a challenging MCG surface in overcast conditions after Afridi caught Khawaja behind a duck on the second delivery of the innings.
Afridi shrugged off a slow series to also remove Labuschagne in the last delivery before lunch after the batsman tickled him with a delivery down the leg side.
Before their three-over burst with the ball, Pakistan’s lower order kept them in the contest and they were eventually dismissed for 264. An irrepressible Cummins finished with 5 for 48 from 20 overs as Australia gained a useful lead.
After bowling out Australia for 318, Pakistan had mustered a strong response through half-centuries from opener Abdullah Shafique and captain Shan Masood before a collapse of 5 for 64 proved costly.
The third day’s game was delayed 45 minutes due to drizzle that accentuated Melbourne’s fickle weather and no rain was forecast.
Before the second new ball was available, Rizwan bowled his shots while attacking the short pitch bowling. In contrast, Jamal, who has a first-class average of almost 20, was intent on surviving but provided tenacious support as he absorbed the majority of the deliveries early in the day’s play.
Jamal suffered several short, threatening deliveries from Cummins to the body, including a painful blow to the back that required medical attention. He scored just four runs in his first 50 balls before driving a short delivery from quick Josh Hazlewood to the boundary.
The lack of strike seemed to unsettle Rizwan, who had been aggressive from the start, marked by an audacious six off Cummins over deep backward square late on the second day.
Cummins, reinforcing his tactical talent, placed an additional receiver on the opposite side and executed the plan to perfection. He tempted Rizwan in the 42nd over with a full, wide delivery that went straight to David Warner, who had just been moved to short cover.
Afridi decided to go all out against offspinner Nathan Lyon and used his feet as he deployed the sweep. He then hit the quick Mitchell Starc for a couple of boundaries to reach 20 for the first time in his Test career.
Soon after, Afridi was caught at the crease by a quicker delivery from Lyon on an lbw dismissal that was confirmed on DRS.
But Australia were left frustrated when Jamal finally looked to attack and successfully bowled Lyon to score a boundary down the leg side.
It was left to Cummins, who immediately unleashed a brutal delivery that climbed unpleasantly over Hasan Ali before cleanly bowling him with a pearl that fell back and was starkly reminiscent of his stunning dismissal of talisman Babar Azam at the end of the second day.
Cummins completed his tenth five-wicket haul in his Test career to further burnish his growing legacy.
Lyon stumped Mir Hamza to finish with 4 for 73 in 18.5 overs in his first match since taking his 500th wicket in the series opener. Jamal was stranded on 33 not out but continued an impressive start to his Test career.
Tristan Lavalette is a journalist based in Perth.
