Skipper Smith praises Starc and Lyon after sensational Test win

melbourne — Winning skipper Steve Smith paid tribute to Mitchell Starc’s match-turning impact to spur Australia to a sensational lastday series victory over Pakistan in Melbourne on Friday.

Starc spearheaded the final day turnaround, slamming 84 runs off 91 balls with seven sixes before taking four wickets for 36 off 15.2 overs to help skittle the tourists for 163. “I thought Starcy was incredible. I thought he batted incredibly,” Smith said. “He broke the record for the most sixes at the MCG, and hit the ball incredibly cleanly to give us an opportunity to get 180 and have the overs that we did at them today. It was pretty special.

“What Starcy’s done was worldclass.” Starc’s seven sixes surpassed the record in an innings in a Melbourne Test held by Andrew Symonds with six in his 72 against South Africa in 2005. Smith said it was a remarkable effort by his team to get up after Pakistan had batted for the most part of the first three rain-disrupted days to set a first innings total of 443. “It’s got to be right up there. I said to the boys this morning that cricket’s a funny game, and anything can happen,” the captain said.

“The plan this morning was to bat for the first 40 minutes and hopefully lose no wickets and then be able to put our foot down and get a bit of a total to have a crack at Pakistan today. Smith also had praise for maligned off-spinner Nathan Lyon, who grabbed the crucial wickets of Younis Khan, captain Misbah-ul-Haq and in-form No.6 Asad Shafiq to crack the game wide open. “A lot of credit has got to go to Nathan Lyon. I thought he bowled beautifully this afternoon,” Smith said. —