Boxing Day Test LIVE: Warner dropped in slips after Pakistan opts to ...

Hasan Ali has replaced Hamsa and looks to be moving the ball a little bit but he didn’t seem to bother either Warner or Khawaja too much in his first over.

Pakistan need wickets and they haven’t come yet.

Australia 0-26 (Khawaja 12, Warner 10) after 10 overs.

David Warner.Credit: Getty Images

Afridi continues to beat the bat, especially against Warner while Mir Hamsa sent down a couple of full deliveries that last over and hit Khawaja on the pads, although the batter was outside the line so avoided any lbw appeals.

Australia hasn’t had it all their own way in the first half hour, but Khawaja finished the over with a straight drive that stopped just millimetres from the boundary rope.

Australia 0-21 (Warner 9, Khawaja 8) after eight overs.

Usman Khawaja.Credit: Getty Images

Afridi continues to hone in on a good length and he has had Khawaja looking a little uncertain in that last over, either beating the bat or forcing him to pull his bat away.

Afridi’s pace has lifted slightly as well, a couple of balls seem to be well over 135km/h now.

He now has five men in catching positions behind the bat, and his most recent over was a maiden.

Australia 0-11 (Warner 6, Khawaja 5)

Shaheen Afridi.Credit: AP

Warner has been dropped at first slip off Afridi’s bowling.

It was a regulation catch and went right to ground.

Heart break for Pakistan after choosing to bowl first.

Australia 0-7 (Khawaja 5, Warner 2) after three overs.

Warner and Khawaja rode their luck in the second over with a quick single almost resulting in a run out but the throw missed the stumps.

Mir Hamsa, who like Afridi is a left-armer, didn’t bowl faster than 128 kilometres per hour in that first over with a lack of pace in the side still a big concern for Pakistan.

“I can’t remember the last time I saw two left-armers opening the bowling,” Mark Waugh said on Fox Cricket.

Australia 0-6 (Khawaja 4, Warner 2) after two overs.

Disappointing over from Afridi to start the match as he didn’t seem to trouble the Aussies at all.

Warner took the first few balls and took a single then Khawaja used his soft hands to edge the ball low through the gap in the slips cordon.

Australia 0-5 (Khawaja 4, Warner 1)

David Warner warms up on Boxing Day.Credit: Getty Images

The clouds have come in for the start of play and Pakistan will be hoping to get some seam during this early overs.

The anthems and welcome to country have been completed, and play is due to start at 10.30am AEDT.

The crowd has built up steadily too, MCG looks well less than half full right now, around 30,000 to 35,000 I’d estimate.

But we know fans usually come in a little later on Boxing Day.

David Warner and Usman Khawaja have come out to open for Australia, both received a big cheer, Khawaja’s sounded a little louder.

Shaheen Afridi will bowl the first over for Pakistan.

Pakistan have made three changes to the side which was hammered in Perth.

The big one is wicketkeeper Sarfaraz Ahmed loses his place behind the stumps to Mohammad Rizwan.

Left-arm seamer Hamza Mir comes into the XI to replace injured paceman Khurram Shahzad, while Hasan Ali takes all-rounder Faheem Ashraf’s position in the side.

The visitors are not fielding a frontline spinner at the MCG, which has offered more assistance to the fast bowlers since its overhaul after the 2017 bore draw.

That said, Nathan Lyon played a big part late last year in Australia’s defeat of South Africa.

Pakistan skipper Shan Masood said Sarfaraz had been preferred in the Perth due to his record in Australia and to reward him for his domestic form, while also giving Rizwan more time to adjust after playing white-ball cricket in the World Cup.

“For me, if I had it my way or we had it our way, we’d like ideally both to play but that’s not possible but now we think Rizwan is ready and we can give Saifi that little bit of break to sort of regroup, comeback,” Masood said on Christmas Day.

“And again it’s more of a tactical decision in terms of conditions and what we can get best out of each player in those conditions.”