celebrate.But the calls for a no-ball have disappeared. Theres no need for them. Shafiq and Sha

CALGRY, Alberta -- Brian Elliott was eager to get back in the rink on a hot summer day. After years of fending off challengers in St. Louis, the goalie has big expectations entering next season as the unquestioned No. 1 in Calgary.This is a big one for me so Im really looking forward to it, Elliott said when introduced to the media Wednesday. Sometimes you want that extra bit of summer to relax and enjoy your downtime but now Ive gotten really excited to get the pads back on and ready to get back at it.The Flames acquired the 31-year-old Elliott from St. Louis on the night of the NHL draft for a second-round pick. Elliott and his wife were on vacation in Croatia at the time.When I got the news, it was 2 oclock in the morning and I saw my phone lighting up, Elliott said. I didnt go back to sleep after that, I was so excited.Elliott has the second-highest save percentage in the league among goalies who have played at least 50 games over the past five seasons at .925, just behind New Jerseys Cory Schneider (.926).Yet as well as he has performed over that five-year period in St. Louis, he never seemed to fully gain the trust of the coaching staff that kept trying other options. He gave way to Jaroslav Halak in one playoffs, Ryan Miller was brought in to be the guy in another. Two years ago, the Blues turned to Jake Allen in the postseason.To have that good of numbers and not get the opportunity to be the No. 1 guy, sometimes its frustrating, Elliott said. But Ive always believed if you worked hard, put your head down and plowed through it, opportunities will pop up for you.Last year, the Flames trio of Jonas Hiller, Karri Ramo and Joni Ortio collectively ranked last in the NHL in goaltending.Calgary will turn to two new goalies. Veteran backup Chad Johnson was signed as a free agent.Elliott was selected by 291st overall by Ottawa in the 2003 draft and has played 323 career games (165-99-32) with the Senators, Blues and Colorado Avalanche. He said hes ready for this next chapter.Its talked about a lot with goaltenders. It just takes longer to develop. You have to go through those experiences just to be able to be that consistent player and not really feel the ups and downs and the roller coaster of a season, he said. Just stay calm. Trust your game, trust your work and just go out and play. It takes time to learn that.Flames general manager Brad Treliving said while Elliotts on-ice performance was important, they also really liked the fit off the ice.The numbers speak for themselves but a big part of us going out and getting Brian is also the person, he said. We talked to players that played with him, teammates that have had him, coaches that have coached him. 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Nine-hundred-and-fifty people walked through the Gabba gates before the first over was bowled.There wasnt the swimming pool, bikini, Hawaiian-shirted, beery-party atmosphere that had set the scene for the first three days of the Test. The eye-watering confetti pattern of the seats, meant to give the illusion of greater numbers but hidden by actual people from day one to three, was now revealed.The fans hadnt paid to enter: why would anyone pay to see a few overs, a couple of Pakistan wickets and a quick victory for the home side?A hundred and eight runs to win. Surely it may as well have been 1008. 100,008. A million and eight.****Asad Shafiq and Yasir Shah start quietly and solidly, Shafiq trying to keep the strike when Mitchell Starc, in particular, is bowling. The countdown is on.A hundred runs to win.A trickle of Pakistan fans, clad in green and bearing flags, have started to arrive. Some are families, cousins passing children around and chattering in Urdu. Others are on their own, or with a mate or two. But they all come to the same place.There is Rohan, from Lahore. He only arrived in Australia a few weeks earlier, here to study in Brisbane. The last time he saw Pakistan play was nine years ago in Karachi, when he was 14 years old.The chanting starts in earnest: Pakistan zindabad! For the players, this must be like playing in the UAE, their home that isnt a home: a huge stadium, virtually empty, echoing with the cries from a small pocket of noisy green loyalty.Yasir, with a top Test score of 30 to his name, crouches and waits as Starc steams in and spears a yorker at his toes. Yasir jams his bat down just in time. Another yorker, another jam.The fans know this is about survival; Bear Grylls should probably be out in the middle. They know Yasir needs all the help he can get. They scream at Starc as he runs in, No ball! No ball! As if they can, by shouting, force his foot to overstep.Josh Hazlewood is next. He bowls wide to Shafiq, who slashes through the covers for four.They jump to their feet. Maybe they dont all really believe yet, truly believe that their team can pull off the most preposterous chase in all of Test history. But they are starting to.Drinks are called. Eight-four runs to win.A family sits in the middle of the small crowd, all in green shirts with their names printed across the back. The father, Faisal. Next to him a young girl picks up a flag. Shes wearing green sunglasses with the Pakistan moon. As she stands on the chair her name becomes visible. Hidayah. Her tiny Mini-Me sister, Mahdiyya, smiles and claps as Hidayah starts the chanting, her young, clear voice ringing around the stands and out to the players in the middle. Pakistan zindabad!Nathan Lyon comes on to bowl. Come on Garry, they cry. Then laugh.Across the ground, a single Australian attempts the Aussie, Aussie, Aussie call. It sounds lonely and a little pathetic, so the Pakistan fans take it up. Theyll cheer for both sets of fans.Yasir almost edges Lyon to Peter Handscomb at short leg. Theres a collective intake of breath so sharp it seems all the air has been sucked out of the Gabba. Yasir safely sweeps the next ball for a single and the air is released. The countdown now comes afterr every run.dddddddddddd Only 73! Only 73!Smith sends Hansdcomb to field at third man, directly in front of Little Pakistan. It almost seems like a punishment for not taking the catch. Handscomb is greeted with a rousing rendition of Dil Dil Pakistan. Its a song thats ubiquitous at any cricket match involving Pakistan. Now, just weeks after the death of the iconic pop singer Junaid Jamshed, who made it famous, it evokes an added poignancy.Mani is singing along. Hes originally from Multan but has lived in the Australian capital, Canberra, where he umpires in a local competition, for five years. Hes never seen Pakistan play and he is beyond nervous.The fans have now become celebrities. The television crews arrive. Ian Healy, zindabad! The radio crews and photographers follow. There are jeers for Starc when he shapes to throw the ball back at Yasir. There are cheers when Yasir responds by nudging another single. Jeers and cheers all round. Mani and Rohan shake hands. Theyve never met but they share a bond and could be about to share in history.Fifty-three runs to win.Omair has been standing on his seat, leading the singing. He was born in Australia and lives in Sydney but his parents hail from Karachi. Lyon leaps full stretch in an attempt to take a ball that flies past him, and lands face-down. He stays there. Omair also goes down. He drums the seat with jittery hands. Every exhale is a gust of pure tension. I cant do this. I cant do this.Yasir is rapped on the pads and Hazlewood appeals. The the umpires finger rises and so do the hands of the fans as they clutch their heads. Mani turns away and mutters, He didnt offer a shot. He didnt offer a shot. He cant look at the big screen as Yasir calls for the DRS, but his neighbours do, all on their feet, all on edge. When the cheers go up for the not-out call, Mani shakes his head. Hes too anxious to celebrate.But the calls for a no-ball have disappeared. Theres no need for them. Shafiq and Shah have got this. Now they all believe.Forty-one runs to win.Starc. A bouncer. Shafiq. Warner.It happens so quickly and this time there is no review, no chance, no reprieve. There isnt even time to inhale. A few seconds of disbelief and then they are on their feet again. Shafiq removes his helmet and looks to the sky in despair and then raises his bat to Little Pakistan. Youre a hero. Youre a hero, they reply.They rouse once more for Rahat Ali. He squirts out a single. Rahat for president!Forty runs to win.And then its over. Quickly and inexplicably. As the bails flash in the sunlight and Yasir is caught flailing out of his crease, no one seems to believe it could end this way. Even though they started the day barely believing it could be this close.Two thousand five hundred and ninety-three people are now in the Gabba. They havent paid of course. Why would anyone pay to see a few overs, a couple of Pakistan wickets and a quick victory for the home side?The fans in Little Pakistan combine their chants. Aussie Aussie Aussie! Pakistan zindabad!So close, says Mani, as he leaves his new friends. Maybe… in Melbourne. ' ' '