Australia completed a whitewash here at Sydney beating Pakistan by 220 runs. Buoyed by some tidy spells by Hazlewood and the spinners, Australia wrapped up the Test and the series in style. Sarfraz Ahmed resisted with an attacking 72 but Pakistan had a tough time stalling the fall of wickets.
Warner's aggressive knock at the top of the order followed by Smith, Handscomb and Khawaja quickening up the rate ensured a quick declaration on Day 4. Pakistan had not batted well right through the series, except when they threatened to chase down a world record score.
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They failed to find the same sort of rhythm going, succumbing easily as Azhar Ali and Younis Khan were dismissed early on Day 5.
Here are the talking points from Sydney at the end of the third Test.
#5 Matt Renshaw cements his spot for India series
Australia were desperately in search of a stable opening partner for David Warner for some time. An injury to Shaun Marsh, Joe Burns going out of favour and Usman Khawaja settling in at no.3 meant the 20-year-old Matt Renshaw was called up.
In 4 Tests thus far, Renshaw has made 315 runs at a healthy average of 63. This includes his first Test hundred here at SCG. He ensured he converted it to a big one by making 184, 16 short of a coveted double hundred.
Renshaw has proved to be an able ally to Warner's aggressive ways. He is patient and calm and plays the ball on merit. His sedate start is more often than not compensated by some quick runs once he settles in. Renshaw will undoubtedly make the cut for the Indian series, a place where two other very young openers from England shone of late.
#4 There is no stopping David Warner
David Warner has carried on the momentum from 2016 into 2017 and how! The left-handed opener was in bullish touch in the first innings, smashing a 78 ball 100. He wasn't done though and in the second innings made the second fastest fifty in Test history.
Warner was ruthless against Yasir Shah, smashing him all over the park. The veteran was carted all around Sydney by Warner. The fourth over of the second innings saw Warner hit two consecutive sixes followed by two more fours against Shah.
Warner was critical in Australia barging their way to a declaration in the second innings. A run rate in excess of 7.5 in the second innings was primarily due to the 23 ball half-century by David Warner.
#3 Yasir Shah loses quite a bit of sheen
Yasir Shah, the veteran leggie, was a vital cog in Pakistan's Test wheel of late. He earned rave reviews from the likes of Shane Warne and was expected to bamboozle Aussie batsmen, who are deemed as poor players of spin.
But the leggie faltered big time, bowling flat and without any rhythm; least helped by some thoughtless field placements from his captain, Misbah-ul-Haq. Warner, Renshaw and Handscomb took full toll of his lacklustre bowling.
The wrist spinner was smacked for 167 in his 40 overs in the first innings and if that wasn't poor enough in a Test match, his second yielded 124 in 14 overs. Pakistan would be pondering about his future pretty soon.
#2 Peter Handscomb goes from strength to strength
Handscomb has been a splendid addition to Australia's middle order. The wristy back foot player has his share of weaknesses but is too good a player to be kept out of the game. The right-handed batsmen hit his second hundred of the series in Sydney and will end the series with a Bradman-esque average of 99.75.
Handscomb is an exceptional player of spin bowling and will be critical to Australia's chances when they tour India later. He was steady, composed and played some scintillating shots in the Test, more so in the second innings where he made a 25 ball 40.
Like Renshaw, Handscomb has 4 Tests in his kitty and looks likely to add many more to it, given his maturity and calmness at the wicket. He even showed his long hidden talents of wicket keeping when Matthew Wade walked off the pitch with a stomach bug.
#1 Misbah-ul-Haq's woeful series
Misbah has had a pretty poor series by his standards as he struggled against seamers and spinners alike. Nathan Lyon, in particular, had an upper hand over the Pakistani skipper, who was very edgy against the offie.
Misbah made headlines before the Test by stating that he was pondering retirement. At 42, that decision may not be far off given that he has been fairly inconsistent over the past few months.
His field placements for Yasir Shah was a critical factor in the leggie's poor performance right through the series. The usually inspiring captaincy of Misbah was missing right throughout this series as he struggled to make an impact with the bat as well.
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