JOHANNESBURG, Sep 18 (Reuters) Michael Hussey and Brad Hodge took charge in a strong fifth-wicket stand to hoist Australia to 164 for seven against Pakistan in their Twenty20 World Cup Super Eights match today.
Hussey and Hodge hammered 63 off 40 balls after excellent Pakistan bowling, spearheaded by Sohail Tanveer, had largely kept the run rate down.
Fast bowler Tanveer made the initial breakthrough in the second over when he had Matthew Hayden caught at short midwicket by Younis Khan for one.
Adam Gilchrist tore into the bowling with five fours in 12 balls before left-arm seamer Tanveer had him caught at backward point by Mohammad Hafeez in the fourth over for 24.
Spinners Shahid Afridi and Hafeez made their mark by removing Andrew Symonds (29) and Ricky Ponting (27) respectively.
Hussey, who scored 37 off 25 balls, and Hodge, who made 36 off 29 deliveries, then mounted a charge but Pakistan had the final word as Tanveer, Umar Gul and Mohammad Asif conceded just 14 runs in the last three overs and took three more wickets.
Tanveer was the most destructive bowler, claiming his third wicket when he had Hussey caught by Imran Nazir.
He finished with three for 31 as all five Pakistan bowlers performed well, suppressing the Australian run rate effectively.
REUTERS BJR AS1953