PAK vs AUS LIVE Score, T20 World Cup Semifinal 2 Updates: Australia needs 177 to seal place in final

Welcome to Sportstar's LIVE coverage of the T20 World Cup 2021 Semifinal 2 between Australia and Pakistan. This is Santadeep Dey, bringing you all the action as it unfolds at the Dubai International Stadium.

PAK vs AUS LIVE COMMENTARY

AUSTRALIA INNINGS

Stay tuned! We will be back shortly.

TARGET: AUSTRALIA NEEDS 177 TO SEAL A BERTH IN THE ICC MEN'S T20 WORLD CUP FINAL.

PAKISTAN INNINGS

PAK 176/4 in 20 overs: Starc to bowl the last. Malik departs as well - castled. Australia has managed to pull back things to an extent in the last two overs. Starc has now moved past Shane Watson to pick up the most wickets for Australia in T20 WCs - 24. Two back-to-back sixes from Fakhar sees him bring up his fifty off 31 deliveries.

PAK 161/3 in 19 overs: Excellent start to the over for Australia as Asif departs for a golden duck, picking out Smith at long-on. Smith, generally as safe as houses, drops a sitter off the very next ball! Fakhar survives. This has been a brilliant comeback by Cummins though: three runs and a wicket off that over.

PAK 158/2 in 18 overs: Starc starts off with a wide yorker. That'll be the plan alright. Starc sees the back of Rizwan... finally! The fuller ball, this, and Rizwan has misfired it straight into Smith's hands at mid-off. Smoked! Starc misses his length and Fakhar goes BOOM over the Australian's head. SIX. Fakhar on the charge. Straight down the ground for four now off a yorker taken on the full.

PAK 143/1 in 17 overs: Hazlewood to bowl out. Has he got enough on that? Yes, Fakhar has. The strong bottom hand comes into play as he goes down the ground to bring up one of the flattest of sixes over the long-off boundary. A full toss. A no-ball too, to add to that. It has rolled over to the fence. And the free hit has been launched into outer space now. Australia is tumbling over, face down into the ground. 21 of that over: annihilation!

PAK 122/1 in 16 overs: The fifty partnership comes up for the duo with a single. However, it is another excellent over from Zampa with only five singles coming off it.

PAK 117/1 in 15 overs: Cummins tries to bowl the yorker but ends up going waist-high even as Fakhar guides the no ball for four. The Aussies get away with a single off the free hit.

PAK 106/1 in 14 overs: Hazlewood sprays one wide of the left-handed Fakhar. Into the gap she goes! Hazlewood bowls a fuller one onto the pads and Fakhar clears mid-wicket for four. Bludgeoned! 100 up for Pakistan with a mammoth six from Rizwan. Rizwan gets his fifty too off the very next delivery, his 3rd in the tournament, 10th this year in addition to a 100. He is in the form of his life!

PAK 92/1 in 13 overs: Fakhar digs out one of those classic Starc yorkers. The Australia pacer has struck Rizwan on the grille now. Ouch! Mandatory concussion tests underway. There is a bit of swelling visible on his right cheek. An LBW appeal from Starc off the last delivery. They aren't going for a review though.

PAK 89/1 in 12 overs: Rizwan unleashes the slog sweep and Zampa could only watch it vanish into the stands. With that, PAK vs AUS: Rizwan becomes first batter to smash 1000 T20I runs in a calendar year . Another four down third man, this time in byes.

PAK 75/1 in 11 overs: There is an appeal for caught behind down legside. However, Finch decides not to go upstairs. Rizwan calls for two with a nudge towards deep mid-wicket off the last ball and gets it quite comfortably in the end.

PAK 71/1 in 10 overs: Zampa's short-of-a-length delivery has Babar searching for answers. The very next ball, however, is a wide. Rizwan charges down after hesitating for a bit but isn't able to connect. Just a single. WICKET! The biggest fish is in the net. Babar holes out to Warner at wide long-on. Fakhar joins Rizwan as we head into a drinks break.

PAK 68/0 in 9 overs: With five offside fielders, Maxwell is coming round the wicket. Might be looking to push it across. Concedes a run a ball.

PAK 62/0 in 8 overs: A short-arm jab towards legside brings up four more. Regal batting from Babar. With that shot, he has now become the quickest to 2500 T20I runs in 62 innings. Bests Virat Kohli's feat in 68. Marsh bangs one short over Babar's head. It has been called a wide.

Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam get off to a brisk start in the PowerPlay.   -  AP

PAK 51/0 in 7 overs: A shot by Rizwan down to long-on for a single brings up Pakistan's fifty. Zampa completes an otherwise tight and quick over.

PAK 47/0 in 6 overs: Babar picks up three runs as he drills one through extra cover. Warner gives it a chase from mid-off and intercepts just before it could breach the fence. Maxwell ends up parrying one to the ropes at deep backward square leg. Finch has to think on his feet here. Rizwan dropped again! Zampa, at fine leg, almost pulled it off. Would have been a blinder. This is Pakistan's best PowerPlay score in the T20 World Cup 2021.

PAK 38/0 in 5 overs: Rizwan shakes off the nerves with a SIX! What a way to welcome Hazlewood back into the attack. He picks the length early and swivel-pulls through the legside. Rizwan digs out a yorker to steal a quick single. Edged and safe. The short third man saves a few runs.

PAK 29/0 in 4 overs: Cummins starts off with a wide. His PowerPlay woes in the tournament continue as Babar picks out backward square again. Four runs. Change of field as Finch places Zampa at deep backward square leg to check the run flow.

PAK 21/0 in 3 overs: A bit of spin into the mix as Maxwell runs in to bowl his first. Invites a soft-edge towards cover. Warner DROPS Rizwan! Oh, that must hurt. A miscue, which hangs in the air for a long, long time and Warner, who manages to get there from mid-off has let it burst through his fingers. Worse, it goes for four. Babar gets another boundary with a sweep towards backward square.

PAK 11/0 in 2 overs: Hazlewood to share the new ball. Wow! Babar has absolutely creamed a late outswinger through cover. Rizwan, otherwise composed, is frantically trying to get off strike after a couple of mistimed swipes.

PAK 6/0 in 1 over: There's no cover. However, a fielder has been stationed at square leg. A bit of swing on the first delivery from Starc and an inside-edge off Rizwan's blade swishes past the stumps. Right on the money! Too straight, 147kph, and Babar has used the pace to flick it down leg and register the first boundary for Pakistan. The last ball is an inswinger again. Rizwan has no reply to that and gets beaten fair and square.

There's a loud cheer as Pakistan openers Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam make their way to the crease. Mitchell Starc has the new ball in hand.

- 7:24 PM IST: Time for the national anthem, ladies and gentlemen! The teams follow the umpires out to the middle. Australia is up first.

PAK vs AUS PLAYING XI

Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Babar Azam (c), Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Afridi

Australia: David Warner, Aaron Finch (c), Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade (wk), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood

WHAT THEY SAID

Babar Azam, Pakistan skipper: We will look to put runs on the board and then defend it. It is an honour to lead this bunch of players. The UAE is our backyard; we know these conditions well. No changes for us.

Aaron Finch, Australia captain: We will bowl. The wicket will not change a lot over the course of the game. The guys are relaxed. This pitch has played true right through the IPL and the World Cup. Same team.

PAK vs AUS TOSS

Australia wins toss and chooses to field

PAK vs AUS PITCH REPORT

"It is a little dry. Whichever team wins toss, will look to chase. The spinners will have purchase. In the second innings dew will become factor," reckons VVS Laxman.

PAK vs AUS LIVE UPDATES

- 6:08 PM IST: Team Australia begins its warm-up.

- 5:44 PM IST: "The strip is the same as the one that was used for IND v PAK but Pakistan's dressing room has changed for the semifinal," texts Amol.

- 5:26 PM IST: Our correspondent tweets -

PAK vs AUS PREVIEW

Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer, two of Australia's strongest opening batsmen in Test cricket, will meet each other in different colours in the T20 World Cup semifinal in Dubai on Thursday.

Hayden, in his maiden assignment as the coaching staff in the Pakistan cricket team, will be hoping for a win against the Aussies, coached by Langer.

Being the only unbeaten side in the tournament, Hayden will be expecting his boys to maintain the form.

Besides, the semifinal could well be touted as a curtain-raiser to Australia’s first tour of Pakistan in 2022 after 24 years.

Going by the line-ups, it has the making of a humdinger. Aaron Finch and David Warner are the closest competitors to Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan in the race for the best opening combination of the tournament.

There is little to choose between Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali - all of them have left their footprints in the T20 World Cup.

The battle of spinners could end up being the decisive factor. Adam Zampa has been a revelation for Australia, being the joint-highest wicket-taker in the Super 12 stage with 11 scalps. On the contrary, despite their ability to stifle batters, neither Shadab Khan nor Imad Wasim has been among wickets consistently.

If Zampa spins his web to keep the Pakistan middle-order - comprising Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali and Mohammad Hafeez - quiet, Australia will have a chance to shine at the biggest stage of the shortest format.

- Amol Karhadkar

PAK vs AUS PREDICTED XI

Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Babar Azam (c), Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Shah Afridi

Australia: David Warner, Aaron Finch (c), Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade (wk), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood

PAK vs AUS DREAM11 PREDICTION

Wicketkeeper – Mohammad Rizwan (vc)

Batters – David Warner, Babar Azam (c), Steve Smith, Shoaib Malik

All-rounders – Glenn Maxwell, Shadab Khan

Bowlers – Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf

Team Composition: PAK 6:5 AUS Credits left: 0.0

PAK vs AUS HEAD-TO-HEAD STATS

Span: 2007-2021

Matches: 23

Won: Pakistan - 13, Australia - 9, NR - 1

In T20 WC: Won: Pakistan - 3, Australia - 3

HS (PAK) vs AUS: 201

LS (PAK) vs AUS 74

HS (AUS) vs PAK: 196

LS (AUS) vs PAK: 89

PAK vs AUS STARS

PAK vs AUS WIN PREDICTION

Pakistan (51%)

PAK vs AUS SQUADS

Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam (c), Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Nawaz, Haider Ali, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Sarfaraz Ahmed

Australia: David Warner, Aaron Finch (c), Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Steven Smith, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood, Kane Richardson, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Swepson, Josh Inglis

WHERE TO WATCH T20 WORLD CUP 2021 SEMIFINAL 2 PAK vs AUS LIVE?

The Pakistan vs Australia match will be aired LIVE on Star Sports 1, Star Sports 1 HD, Star Sports 1 Hindi, Star Sports 1 Hindi HD, Star Sports 1 Tamil, Star Sports 1 Telugu and Star Sports 1 Kannada. The match will also be live streamed on Hotstar.