Nathan Lyon, Australia’s spin legend, said Wednesday he was enjoying the prospect of bowling against one of the world’s best batters, Babar Azam, in this week’s first Test against Pakistan.
The 34-year-old is Australia’s top wicket-taker with 415 from 105 Tests and a record of 95 in 19 matches in Asia.
Azam is the world’s top batsman in one-day internationals and Twenty20 internationals and is rated eighth in Test cricket.
“I’ve always said from the start of my career that I want to fight against the world’s finest players, and Babar is unquestionably one of them,” Lyon said during a video press conference.
Azam is the linchpin in Pakistan’s often fragile batting order, which also includes the seasoned Azhar Ali and the hard-charging Fawad Alam.
“I’m excited to test myself, but there are some incredible batsmen in this Pakistan line-up with whom I’m going to have some great battles.”
“To be honest, my attitude is to win every game I enter, not to draw or lose, and so my mindset is to win 3-0 in Pakistan.
Lyon said that Australia were on a high after their 4-0 thrashing of England in the Ashes earlier this year.
“I believe this is a really youthful and dynamic Australian Test team that will go here fresh off a really great summer at home, which has instilled a lot of confidence in the group.”
He compared the Rawalpindi stadium pitch to the one used by Australia in their 2018 match against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates.
“It is sparsely vegetated. I anticipate it to be really easy to bat on for the first few days, and then perhaps spin and reverse swing will factor in,” he continued.
