Skipper Babar Azam hit a second successive century and Imam-ul-Haq an impressive half century Saturday to anchor Pakistan's first series win over Australia since 2002 with a nine-wicket victory in the third and final one-dayt international in Lahore.
It was a dominant performance by the home team at Gaddafi Stadium as they dismissed Australia for a below-par 210 through their fast bowlers, who shared eight wickets, and then chased down the target in 37.5 overs losing just one wicket.
Azam, dropped by Travis Head off Jason Behrendorff on one, took full advantage of the reprieve, driving Marnus Labuschagne for two to complete his 16th ODI hundred off 110 balls.
Azam, who scored 114 in the second game, hit 12 boundaries in his 115-ball 105 not out.
Unbeaten Haq followed his own back-to-back hundreds with a polished 89 for his 11th ODI half century. He cracked six boundaries and a six, and finished the series with 298 runs.
Haq and Azam shared an unbroken 190-run stand for the second wicket after opener Fakhar Zaman fell to Nathan Ellis for 17 -- Australia's only success in the innings.
The elusive 2-1 win came after Pakistan lost six consecutive ODI series to Australia -- and the preceding three-match Test series 1-0 last month.
Australia won the first ODI by 88 runs while Pakistan clinched the second by six wickets, both also at the same venue
"When you lose the first game then your players need confidence and once they were given that they came back srongly and did well," said Azam.
"Credit to them for this series win."
Australian skipper Aaron Finch rued the lack of runs.
"We didn't get enough runs," said Finch. "When you go three down in the first few overs, it's always going to be hard to get a big total."
Earlier, fast bowlers Haris Rauf (3-39), Mohammad Wasim (3-40) and Shaheen Shah Afridi (2-40) kept the pressure from the start as Australia were bowled out in 41.5 overs.
Alex Carey top-scored with a gritty 61-ball 56 and Sean Abbott hit a 40-ball 49 in an otherwise dismal batting show by the visitors.
Sent in to bat for a third successive time by Azam, Australia lost in-form Head with the first ball of the match, from Shaheen.
Out-of-form Finch fell in the next over from Rauf, trapped leg-before for a second time in a row, as Australia lost both openers without a run on the board.
Rauf made it 3-6 when Marnus Labuschagne edged one to slip for Iftikhar Ahmed to take a simple catch.
Ben McDermott (36) and Marcus Stoinis (19) took the score to 59 when the latter chipped spinner Zahid Mahmood to Haq, who took a good diving catch.
McDermott, who smashed a maiden ODI century in the second game, was trapped leg-before by Wasim for 36 as Australia lost half their side for just 67 by the 16th over.
Carey and Cameron Green (34) added an invaluable 81 runs for the sixth wicket off 95 balls, but Wasim came for his second spell to bowl Green in the 32nd over.
Carey's resistance finally ended when he holed out to spinner Iftikhar after hitting six boundaries and a six.
Abbott, who also hit six boundaries and a six, made sure Australia got past 200 during a last-wicket stand of 44 before falling to Rauf.
Australia will end the tour -- their first to Pakistan in 24 years -- with a single T20I on Tuesday, also in Lahore.
Joi Barua channels personal grief into a cosmic composition
The song is part of the expansive Cosmic Rhapsody project
Collaboration spans continents, blending science, emotion and sound
A song shaped by loss and imagination
When Joi Barua received the lyrics for Star Among the Cosmic Clouds, he was mourning the loss of his father. Alone in his childhood home in Jorhat, Assam, he found himself interpreting the story of Lavi, a purple alpaca who sacrifices herself to ignite a magical orb, through the lens of memory and emotion.
“My father was also like a guiding light,” Barua shared. “Though the story was conceived so well, it was written from a dual emotion—loss and return.”
The song became a way to honour his father’s life and spirit, transforming grief into melody. Dr Susan Lim and Christina Teenz Tan’s lyrics offered Barua a portal through which he could reframe his sorrow. “Susan handed me my escape,” he said. “She gave me a spaceship to fly into the universe I wanted to.”
Cosmic rhapsody and the power of collaboration
Star Among the Cosmic Clouds is the first single from the pop album within Cosmic Rhapsody, a multi-part artistic venture that includes orchestral recordings, animated storytelling and genre-blending music.
The project explores humanity’s journey into space and the philosophical questions of identity and consciousness. It features three versions of the song: Barua’s composer’s cut, a studio recording by Killian Donnelly, and a grand orchestral rendition with Tom Ball and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Barua, who describes himself as an untrained musician, expressed deep gratitude for the experience. “I was in a room full of people sincerely trying to work on my song,” he said. “It was like serendipity of another kind.”
The collaboration began in 2015 at an INK conference in Singapore, where Barua met Dr Lim. What started as a conversation over coffee evolved into a global creative partnership.
Music memory and the meaning of identity
Barua hopes listeners will take away a deeper understanding of loss—not as an end, but as a transformation. “Beyond loss is responsibility,” he said. “To live up to the love you received.”
As an Indian artist working on an international stage, Barua sees his identity as something organic. “Every artist who’s Indian is that identity,” he said. “I bring my consciousness into it, trained by my upbringing and my land.”
Looking ahead, Barua hinted at future symphonic performances of Cosmic Rhapsody around the world. With 17 songs in the album and a growing international team, the project continues to evolve.
When asked to sum up the experience in three words, Barua simply said: “Thank you God.”
By clicking the 'Subscribe’, you agree to receive our newsletter, marketing communications and industry
partners/sponsors sharing promotional product information via email and print communication from Garavi Gujarat
Publications Ltd and subsidiaries. You have the right to withdraw your consent at any time by clicking the
unsubscribe link in our emails. We will use your email address to personalize our communications and send you
relevant offers. Your data will be stored up to 30 days after unsubscribing.
Contact us at data@amg.biz to see how we manage and store your data.