Babar Azam top-scored with 40 as Pakistan defeated Australia by four wickets in the third and final ODI match in Lahore on Thursday to clinch the series 2-1.
Updated: June 5, 2026, 12:06 PM IST
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Babar Azam en route to scoring 40 against Australia in 3rd ODI in Lahore. (Source: X)
PAK vs AUS 2026 3rd ODI: Former Pakistan captain Babar Azam missed out on a 39th ODI fifty by 10 runs but ended the three-match series against world champions Australia on a high as he top-scored in third and final game in Lahore on Thursday to lead his side to a four-wicket win and a 2-1 triumph in the ODI series.
Babar was unlucky to be dismissed for a fighting knock of 40 off 84 balls with 3 fours on a difficult track at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore to help Shaheen Afridi’s Pakistan chase down a modest target of 158 runs. The 31-year-old batter, who notched up a match-winning fifty in the first ODI match last week, was dismissed off a brilliant delivery from Australia’s left-arm spinner Mathhew Kuhnemann as ball turned past his edge to hit the stumps. The video of Babar Azam’s dismissal soon went viral on social media.
WATCH Babar Azam being dismissed by Matthew Kuhnemann in 3rd ODI HERE…
What a delivery! Kohneman gets the big wicket of Babar Azam for 40 pic.twitter.com/k1fJ6MnNzP
— Rehan 56 (@imrehan456) June 4, 2026
Babar’s dismissal meant Pakistan had slumped to 112 for 5 in 29.1 overs and it soon became 112 for 6 when spinner Arafat Minhas was dismissed for 9 but all-rounder Shadab Khan and Abdul Samad carried Paksitan safely past Australia’s total.
Shadab, who had scored 71 in the second ODI match earlier this week, remained unbeaten on 29 off 42 balls with 2 fours as the home team won with more than 8 overs to spare. It was Pakistan’s second successive ODI series win over world champions Australia after their 2-1 win down under in 2024.
Shaheen Afridi defends Babar Azam
Pakistan captain Shaheen Afridi spoke up in defence Babar Azam after the third ODI. “I have a request for you all. You always speak about the seniors not performing. When they do, you ask, ‘Why have you performed?’ Unhe ek haal pe chddh de (Just let them be). Everyone is trying their best. No one is going to their home,” Shaheen Afridi told the media in the post-match press conference.
“In the Rawalpindi ODI, Babar scored a fifty in difficult conditions. He also guided Ghazi Ghori. If you remove seniors from the side, how will you build up the juniors? When I made my debut, seniors were there, and I learned from them. Even the best player in the world will only do well in 3-4 games out of 10. No one can do well in all ten games, so just give everyone a chance,” Shaheen added.
Babar now has 6626 runs in 143 ODI matches at an average of 53.43 with 20 fifties and 38 half-centuries to his name. Earlier, Australia were bundled out for only 157 after batting first with Shaheen being the pick of the bowlers with 3/30 while leg-spinners Abrar Ahmed and Shadab Khan claimed 2 wickets each.
Stand-in Australian captain Josh Inglis had top-scored with 65 off 71 balls with 1 six and 8 fours.
