A summer of nervous nineties

In the final practice session before the Test, Umar Akmal had to be literally dragged away from the nets so pumped was he about the Test. Waqar Younis, Pakistan's bowling and fielding coach, finally urged the youngster to relax, warning of a long day ahead. Perhaps Umar should've taken heed, as his nervous energy got the better of him on the biggest stage he has played on till now. An athletic fielder generally, he dropped a sharp chance at point which came straight at him early on, before fumbling a couple of times in the field during the afternoon. Pakistan will hope he calms down before he comes out to bat.

This is getting silly. Australia went through the West Indies series with 15 half-centuries but no player went on to score a hundred. The loss of Shane Watson for 93, Simon Katich for 98 and then Ricky Ponting for 57 on Boxing Day extended their unexplainable run to 18 half-centuries for the summer without a single player getting to triple-figures.

Another Test, another tragicomic moment for Watson. Having come agonisingly close to his first Test century in Adelaide before being bowled for 96, and then again in Perth when he was caught behind for 89, Watson found a novel way to be denied of his celebration once again. Watson was on 93 and looking strong when he took off for a single after his partner Katich pushed the ball to cover. Katich took three steps and then turned back while Watson kept coming, and the run-out was completed at the bowler's end. But who was out? Replays showed the partners taking their final few steps to the crease in such good sync that it was as if the moves were choreographed, and the third umpire decided that Katich's foot was in his ground a split second before Watson, who trudged off with a seventh Test half-century to his name.

Pakistan's bowling was supposed to be their route to success this series, but an injury and a strange decision before the Test even began spoilt the shape of an attack that served them so well in New Zealand. Danish Kaneria's injured finger was not thought to be bad enough to keep him out yesterday, but it did, depriving Pakistan of their leading wicket-taker from the last tour to Australia and a man in form; he has 20 wickets in his last three Tests. The decision to drop Umar Gul, however, was more surprising, given his role in Pakistan's pace trio. Gul is fit, insisted Pakistan's team management, which means he was dropped on form. Since his heroics for Pakistan in the World Twenty20 in June, Gul has struggled to adjust to Tests; in six Tests in Sri Lanka and New Zealand since, he has picked up 15 wickets at over 45 though that hides a few good, luckless spells in New Zealand in particular.

With no Danish Kaneria in their line-up, Pakistan turned to Imran Farhat for a few overs of legspin on the opening day. He hadn't taken a Test wicket for five and a half years and had only three in his career but they were quality over quantity. He bowled Rahul Dravid for 270 in Rawalpindi in April 2004, having earlier in the same series had Yuvraj Singh caught and bowled. Farhat threatened to add a fourth Test wicket when in his first over he narrowly beat Watson's bat and in his next over Katich very nearly played on, but this time he was not to be the partnership breaker.