Australia vs Pakistan 1st Test Prediction

Team News

Pakistan too, for the first test, have named an unaltered squad that recently toured New Zealand. Mohammad Rizwan and Sharjeel Khan have both been retained in the side. Yasir Shah who suffered a back injury is now fit again and is likely to play this match.

Key Players

Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq and Azhar Ali will be the key members in Pakistan's batting lineup. Younis Khan has been their most successful batsman against the Australians with three hundreds and as many fifties from eight matches. Since the wicket is conducive to pace bowling, Mohammad Amir is more likely to be a bigger threat than Yasir Shah. The speedster seems to be in good rhythm with a five-wicket haul in the warm-up game and we predict him to take the most wickets for Pakistan in this match.

Recent Form

Pakistan's performance in this format of the game has not been consistent of late. They have played nine test matches this year of which they have won four and lost the rest. They won't be too high on confidence after having faced defeats in their previous three tests (one against West Indies and two against New Zealand).

Aus vs Pak Head-to-Head in Tests

The two teams have played a total of 59 test matches against each other in the past. While Australia have won 28 of them, Pakistan have won 14 with the remaining 17 all ending in a draw. The tourists have never been able to beat the hosts at the Gabba. Out of the four matches played here, a drawn game has been the best outcome for them so far while Australia have emerged winners in the remaining three.

Aus vs Pak 1st Test Betting Odds

Pakistan showed promising signs at the start of the year, drawing the series 2-2 against England on English soil and claiming the number 1 test ranking (though only for a short period of time). They also found success later on in the UAE in the first two tests against the West Indies. But since then, it has been a downslide for them. They were beaten by the Windies in the last test and struggled to cope up with the conditions in New Zealand. Since they will be facing similar conditions in Australia, it is going to be an uphill task for them to even save the series.

So not surprisingly, Pakistan are distant outsiders at 6.8 with betfair and 6.00 with bet365. Australia, despite losing the home series to South Africa, are still huge favorites to win this first test at 1.39 with 1xbet and 1.36 with bet365. A draw is 7.2 and 6.50 respectively. There hasn't been a drawn game at this ground since 2004 and it is very unlikely for this match to end up in a draw, unless the weather decides to play spoilsport.

Aus vs Pak 1st Test Prediction

Australia boast an incredible test record at the Gabba. They last lost a match here way back in 1988 against the West Indies. They have, since then, won 20 and drawn 7 out of the 27 matches they have played. On the other hand, Pakistan will be seeking their first test win at this ground. They have played four before and have ended up on the losing side on three occasions. 

Pakistan may have started off their tour with a massive win in the practice game against CAXI,  but facing Australia is going to present a completely different challenge altogether. And after seeing the visitors failing with the bat in New Zealand, there won't be much hope from them when they face the likes of Starc and Hazlewood on a surface that will have pace and bounce written all over it. Pakistan are a bowling-dependent unit and we expect their fast bowlers to find success here but we don't think it will be enough to save this match, leave alone winning.

Final Verdict: We recommend betting on Australia to win this match.