We saw the best and the worst of Pakistan on day three as they had the Australians reeling at 4-16 before dropping Mitchell Marsh at first slip.
Marsh and Steve Smith helped Australia fight its way back into the Test match before Pakistan fought back to snare two late wickets.
How many runs will Australia finish with? And can Pat Cummins and his band of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon bowl Australia to victory?
How many runs will they need to take Pakistan out of the game?
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GILCHRIST JUMPS TO CAREY DEFENCE
Tim Michell
One of Australia’s greatest glovemen has declared criticism of Alex Carey’s form has been unwarranted.
Carey has increasingly come under the microscope in recent Tests, having averaged 12.1 runs since his controversial stumping of Jonny Bairstow in the Ashes.
The 32-year-old, who has career Test batting average of 32.4, will have a chance to improve that figure when he resumes on day four with a crucial role to marshall the tail.
Adam Gilchrist said Carey had been noticeable quieter behind the stumps since the Bairstow incident, but defended the wicketkeeper’s recent form.
“I don’t feel any need to have any pressure on Alex Carey. I don’t see that there’s any extra burden or any expectation that he has to do something,” Gilchrist said on Fox Cricket.
“Twelve months ago in this very Test match he became the first Australian keeper to score 100 in the Boxing Day Test. He’s reliable.
“His opinion is highly respected within the team set-up. A number of areas. And you think the runs will come. As long as he’s doing his job with the gloves there doesn’t need to be any expectation (or) external pressure on him.”
Carey was displaced by Josh Inglis during Australia’s successful ODI World Cup run, while Queensland gloveman Jimmy Peirson was behind the stumps when the Prime Minister’s XI faced Pakistan recently.
“Keeping in touch with him regularly, he seems on face value the same person, the same buoyant personality, the hard worker,” Gilchrist said.
“You can certainly rely on that. That he puts in ridiculous hours working on his glovework. Standing back, standing up to the stumps and obviously then incorporating that same ethic into his batting.”
Gilchrist said Carey, whose sole career hundred came in last summer’s Boxing Day Test, would have been disappointed to fall cheaply in the first innings in Melbourne.
“There’s some days of Test cricket when you walk out batting at No.7 that they present you with, in your mind, ‘OK, I’ve got time to get in here. I’ve got all day to bat. Or as much time as I want to have’,” he said.
“There’s other times when you’re in a bit more of a rush if the top-order has already posted 300,350. So Carey would have been frustrated with that inside edge.”
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