The only T20I between Australia and Pakistan, at the end of the long, gruelling tour will be played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday. The Pakistanis have yet to win a single game on tour, having lost the Test series 0-3 and the ODI series 0-5 to their more strong opposition in Australia. Now, the T20I is their last chance to redeem some faith amongst the fans.

The Pakistanis have been hit hard in more ways than one. For one, they have had the results going totally against them. Of course, the other on-field incident that would have shaken them apart would have been the streaker invasion, who slammed the Pakistani batsman Khalid Latif down and had to be captured by the police. Apart from that, the chief of selectors has resigned back home in Pakistan.

But, the biggest piece of news doing rounds, is that their T20 captain would not be a part of the side which will take field. And the reason is a rather stupid manner in which Afridi tried to tamper with the ball by putting it inside his mouth while the Pakistanis were fielding.

This means, that without Mohammad Yousuf as the T20 captain after his issues with the coach in Australia, and with Younis Khan having given up on the captaincy, there aren't too many players left with the worthy credentials to lead the side. Shoaib Malik could be the leader, but not too many are happy with his leadership qualities, and one may see someone totally different like a Kamran Akmal leading out the Pakistani side for the first time in the history of their cricket.

The Aussies are a changed side as well. Ricky Ponting has retired from the T20 format of the game, whereas the rest of them see a lot of new faces. Michael Clarke will lead the side, whereas Cameron White will be the vice-captain of the team. Also seen in the squad will be the likes of Travis Birt and Steven Smith. Birt is a hard hitting batsman and Smith is an all-rounder from New South Wales. Guys like Ryan Harris, Dirk Nannes and Shaun Tait will be also seen in the squad, as would the likes of Shane Watson, Shaun Marsh and Dave Warner.

What could be interesting is which two of the three open the innings for the Aussies; Watson, Marsh or Warner. Also, the Aussies have chosen not to pick up Nathan Hauritz, in order to help him concentrate on the longer formats of the game and not get away by the T20 cricket. It should be an interesting match-up but something tells me that it could very well be 9-0 to Australia!

Tag :- Australia   Khalid Latif   Mohammad Yousuf   Nathan Hauritz   Pakistan   Ricky Ponting   Ryan Harris