Australia opener Usman Khawaja and former captain Steve Smith got the side back on track against Pakistan on the first day of the third Test in Lahore after losing a couple of early wickets in the morning session.
Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi had reduced Australia to 8/2 after he first removed David Warner and then followed it with the dismissal of Marnus Labuschagne two balls later.
Warner was trapped in front of the stumps for 7 off 13 on a length delivery that just came into the left-hander while Labuschagne was caught behind by Rizwan for a two-ball zero after he edged one while driving a touch fuller delivery through the covers.
But Khawaja and Smith then got into the act and provided the resistance to the side with a steady stand. The left-right batting duo began the rebuilding process in a cautious manner but kept playing their strokes during the course to take the side to 70/2 at lunch.
“We would have wanted to bat first, the wicket looks good. One change for us - Faheem is out and Naseem is in. It might help the spinners from the third day onwards. We'll need to continue with the momentum gained from the last match,” Babar Azam had said at the toss.