The 3 Test series between Pakistan and Australia will now come down to a one game play-off as the first two Tests both ended in draws. The 3rd and final Test will be played from Lahore, starting on Monday afternoon from 4.00pm.
As always, we have you covered with a full preview and betting tips for the Test, courtesy of Andy Rosos below.
Pakistan vs Australia 3rd Test Betting Tips
Lahore, Monday 21st March, 4.00pm (AEDT)
Australia
Confirmed XI: David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey, Mitch Starc, Pat Cummins, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Swepson
The visitors have confirmed that they'll play an unchanged side in the 3rd Test from Lahore. Australian skipper Pat Cummins has suggested that he thinks the pitch will play similarly to the first two, which is not great news for cricket fans. The first two Tests have been pretty laborious, with bat dominating ball in the majority of play.
The Aussies top four have all looked really good throughout the series, and although Travis Head is yet to peel off a score, his spot is rock solid given the Aussies have still managed to put up 459 and 556 in their two first innings so far. The issue for the Aussies has been their ability to take 20 wickets.
Sure, the conditions haven't helped that endevour, but Mitch Swepson looks a little bit raw still while I still have some massive reservations about Nathan Lyon's ability to bowl in the subcontinent.
Pakistan
Likely XI: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam, Fawad Alam, Mohammad Rizwan, Faheem Ashraf, Sajid Khan, Nauman Ali, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi
The Pakistani top six is completely settled and no changes will be made there. We could, however, see some changes to the five bowlers. They will likely go with three spinners and two pacemen again, but I'd like to see them drop one of the spinners and play wiley medium pacer Mohammad Abbas instead.
The home side was rolled for just 148 in the first innings of the 2nd Test, but fought back brilliantly in the 2nd innings, holing on for almost two full days to secure a draw on the back of a massive hundred from skipper Babar Azam. All of the top five for the Pakistanis have now made hundreds in this series, which is a daunting prospect for Aussie bowlers.
Match Prediction
You want to be optimistic with this Test and think that a result is possible either way. However, if Cummins comments are anything to go by, then you have to think that yet another draw is the most likely outcome.
"In terms of the wicket, it will be quite similar to the first two Test matches. There has been quite a lot of traffic here throughout the PSL. So I will expect a lot like that first two matches," Cummins said in reply to the Hindustan Times query during a virtual press conference on Sunday.
"It won't be super friendly for the pace bowlers, there may not be bit of reverse swing...so we will wait and see," he added.
Not extremely convincing for punters who are hunting a result. Another draw here seems the right play.
Prop Bets
Khawaja Over 33.5 1st Innings Runs ($1.90 at Sportsbet)
Imam-ul-Haq Over 69.5 Player Performance ($1.88 at Sportsbet)
Steve Smith 50+ Runs 1st Innings ($2.25 at Sportsbet)
