Nathan Lyon steals the show as Australia smash Pakistan in Perth

Veteran offspinner Nathan Lyon etched his name into the annals of cricket history by claiming his 500th Test wicket on Sunday as Australia dismantled Pakistan in Perth.

Lyon dismissed Faheem Ashraf lbw on review, becoming only the third Australian bowler — alongside the legendary Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath — to reach the milestone.

Lyon’s historic achievement added to the jubilation of the Australian camp as the hosts dominated Pakistan throughout the match.

Facing a formidable target of 450 runs, the visitors faced a Herculean task to avoid their 15th consecutive Test defeat in Australia.

However, Australia’s pace trio of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins proved too much for the Pakistani batsmen.

In a disastrous second innings, Pakistan crumbled in just 30.2 overs on a pitch that offered both bounce and unpredictability.

The opening seven overs were particularly disastrous, with Pakistan losing three wickets for a mere 17 runs.

As the match slipped away from Pakistan, Lyon’s milestone wicket added to their woes, and any hopes of a comeback were extinguished with the dismissals of Sarfaraz Ahmed and Salman Ali Afgha.

Despite the loss, the debutant seamers Khurram Shahzad and Aamer Jamal showcased promise, combining for an impressive 12 of Pakistan’s 15 wickets in the match.

Australia’s dominance was underpinned by opener David Warner’s century on the first day, Mitchell Marsh’s all-round excellence, and Usman Khawaja’s gritty 90 in the second innings.

As Australia celebrated Lyon’s historic achievement and their convincing victory, attention now turns to Pakistan’s need to regroup and address their shortcomings before the upcoming Boxing Day Test at the MCG.

The bold selection calls, including the exclusion of Hasan Ali and Mohammad Rizwan, are likely to face scrutiny as Pakistan aim to mount a comeback.

However, cricket betting sites have pegged Pakistan as +1000 outsiders against the -526.32 home favourites in Melbourne.

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