Australia wins by innings and 48 runs, sweeps Pakistan 2-0
Adelaide: Nathan Lyon had never taken a five-wicket haul against Pakistan. The veteran off-spinner hadn't taken a wicket in the day-night test until the fourth day.
Then they tumbled. He took two wickets in the first session Monday and three in the second before Australia finished off a victory by an innings and 48 runs under lights to complete a two-test series sweep with more than a day to spare.
The 32-year-old Lyon (5-69) now has 50 test wickets at the Adelaide Oval, where he'd worked as a curator before making the national team, his 16th five-wicket haul in tests and his first against Pakistan.
The pace trio of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood did most of the damage in the first test, which Australia won by an innings and five runs, and in Pakistan's first innings in Adelaide before the follow-on.
Pakistan resumed at 39-3 on day four and took the total to 123 before Lyon came into his own on familiar turf. Hazlewood picked up the penultime wicket soon after the dinner break and Cummins finished off the match when he threw down the stumps at the non-striker's end to run out Mohammad Abbas.
Opener David Warner's triple century set Australia on course for another big win, following up from his 154 in the first test. Marnus Labuschagne also produced back-to-back centuries as the Australian batsmen dominated an inexperienced Pakistan attack.
Lyon dismissed Shaheen Afridi to complete a five-wicket haul with the last delivery before the main interval Monday as Pakistan slumped to 229-8. Pakistan added only 10 further runs after the break.
Pakistan was 39-3 overnight after being forced to follow-on on day three, when the visitors were bowled out for 302 to surrender a 287-run first-innings lead.
Shan Masood scored 68 in a determined, 127-ball stand that ended when he advanced to Lyon and mis-judged a drive to mid-off, where Starc took a simple catch to end a 103-run fourth-wicket stand and make the score 123-4.
Asad Shafiq grafted his way to 57 from 112 balls before he was caught at leg-slip by Warner, trying to work a Lyon delivery square, as Pakistan slipped to 154-5.
Pakistan has been on the back foot since Australia won the toss and batted at Adelaide, with Warner posting an unbeaten 335 before skipper Tim Paine declared with the total at 589-3.
The dominance continued after the first break, with Lyon taking over from the quicks as the main threat. He bowled with subtle variety and just missing edges while getting regular wickets and conceding few runs with the old ball.
The sixth-wicket pair offered some stubborn defense before Lyon had Iftikhar Ahmed (27) caught by Labuschagne at short leg.
He trapped trapped Yasir Shah (13) lbw in front with a ball that skidded and sped on for 13 and went to the dinner break midway through his 25th over when Shaheen was caught at mid-off by Hazlewood.
Pakistan will return home to host its first test series in a decade on home soil, against Sri Lanka, and Australia will take on New Zealand in a three-test series.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
