Cummins does Cummins things but Jamal steals show with a half-century to savour

New year, same Pat Cummins. When Australia's captain removed Hasan Ali to complete his third consecutive five-wicket haul, it looked like being a job well done for the home side on the opening day in Sydney. They had, through Cummins of course, halted Pakistan's jaunty recovery between Mohammad Rizwan and Agha Salman, and needed just one wicket to finish things off.

However, that wicket took a long time to come. One-hundred-and-thirty-three balls to be precise as Aamer Jamal stood in their way on the ground where, in 2016-17, he sat in the stands watching Pakistan while living and working near Sydney, plying his trade in grade cricket as he looked for a way to develop and prove himself.

By the time he lofted Nathan Lyon to long-on, he and Mir Hamza had added 86 runs for the final wicket. Jamal farmed the strike, took on the short ball and attacked Lyon at nearly a run-a-ball to lift Pakistan's total to 313. It wasn't quite unimaginable riches, but a far sight better than it appeared at 47 for 4 and 96 for 5. The odds on Marnus Labuschagne having a bowl earlier in the day had looked slim. Jamal, who had gone for an extra net session at the lunch break, walked back to an ovation from the SCG crowd and the admiration of his team-mates.

"It was very emotional," he said. "But you have to control your emotions and feelings. I can't be happier than this. When I was first named in the Test squad, I had said that whether I score a single run or ten runs, it should contribute to the Pakistan team's success. And I'm just glad that that has happened today.

"Cricket is my passion. When passion becomes your profession you start enjoying it. You don't get stressed by it. You want to live in the moment, whether I'm batting or bowling. I have struggled a lot. I've got nothing easily or quickly. I never gave up. Now every stage means a lot to me. It means the world to me."

Australia may well bat far past Pakistan's total, but for the fifth day in a row in the Test series, the visitors have ensured there is a contest. When both Pakistan openers, Abdullah Shafique and debutant Saim Ayub departed for ducks in the first two overs and Babar Azam was again worked over by Cummins, that had looked unlikely.

The Australia captain is about as close as you can get to the perfect fast bowler. On Fox Cricket, Michael Vaughan made a big call about where Cummins would eventually sit among Australian cricketers, when asked who he would pick between him and Dennis Lillee.

"I saw a bit of DK on screen but I think Pat Cummins in time, don't think he's ever going to surpass Sir Don [Bradman], [but] I think Cummins is going to end up being Australia's greatest cricketer after Sir Don," Vaughan said.

Four days after completing his ten-wicket haul in Melbourne, Cummins was quickly into his work when he unfurled a wicked inswinger to pin Babar lbw after the former Pakistan captain had hinted at a return to form with a handful of exquisite drives. But he has attracted some terrific deliveries in this series, and today was another.

Then there was a working over for Saud Shakeel, whose first experience of the pace and bounce in Australia has been a difficult one, and after a blow on the shoulder, he edged from around the wicket. It looked like Pakistan could be rolled, particularly when captain Shan Masood prodded Mitchell Marsh to slip shortly after a no-ball reprieve off the same dismissal.

Rizwan and Salman forged a fightback with the sort of positive batting that would have delighted Masood. So who returned to the attack to break the stand? Of course, it was Cummins. As he did often at the MCG. A short ball to Rizwan, the type that had previously been hooked into the stands, was top-edged to fine leg. Cummins celebrated with arms aloft.

With the final-wicket stand growing, Cummins brought himself back again but this time his Midas touch wasn't there. In a three-over spell with a softening old ball, No. 11 Hamza managed to see out 12 of his 18 deliveries. With Jamal moving into the 80s by taking consecutive boundaries off Lyon, thoughts of an extraordinary century loomed into view.

That was not to be, but even the timing of Jamal's dismissal brought an element of the dramatic to the end of the day. It left time for one over at Australia. Lyon sprinted off and was seen padded up. Was there going to be an opening nightwatcher? Then, for certainly the penultimate, and maybe the last time, David Warner and Usman Khawaja strode out together. They hugged before crossing the rope. Pakistan formed a guard of honour.

There was no Shaheen Shah Afridi to take the first over, and it turned out to not even be a fast bowler. Offspinner Sajid Khan marked out his run. Warner carved the first ball away through the off side. Four deliveries later he defends and the ball bounces agonisingly over the stumps. "Heart-in-mouth stuff there, that last over," Ricky Ponting said.

So the stage was set. Warner will walk out again on Thursday morning. Given his storied career, it would be no surprise if he puts on a show. But Pakistan will have their own ideas about that, and if the last few days of the series are any guide, they will not allow him to have it his own way.