Saud Shakeel, Saqib put Pakistan in control in first Test

In the next over 31-year old debutant pacer Saqib Khan got rid of Dinesh Chandimal, held by Agha Salman, to leave the visitors reeling at 12-2 in the fourth over. However, at this stage skipper Kamindu Mendis and opener Lahiru Udara dug deep to revive the innings.

The duo shared 53 runs for the third wicket association. It was Saqib Khan who broke the stand by claiming the wicket of Lahiru who was caught by Ghazi Ghori behind the stumps. And Sri Lanka were 65-3 at that stage.

Lahiru hit seven fours in his solid 42 which came off 52 balls. Dhananjaya de Silva then joined his skipper Mendis and both batted with great responsibility and built their team’s total without further losing any wicket at close.

They added 49 runs for the fourth wicket unbroken stand. Mendis had struck five fours in his 40 while Dhananjaya made 22 not out with two fours. Saqib, who belongs to Karachi, had a good day on his debut as he captured 2-54 in 10.1 overs.

Mohammad Abbas claimed 1-23. Earlier Pakistan declared their first innings on 434-9 with Saud Shakeel scoring 93. Debutant Arafat Minhas, who also did well in the ODI tri-series recently, contributed a solid fifty to showcase his batting skills in the longest format.

Pakistan resumed at 281-5 with Saud batting on 57 and Ghazi Ghori on seven and added 153 runs before declaring after 106.3 overs.

Saud looked set for his fifth test century but fell seven runs short when he was caught behind by wicket-keeper Kusal Mendis off Asitha Fernando for 93 from 199 deliveries, ending a valuable innings that included nine fours. Ghori also made a significant contribution, scoring 48 from 72 balls before being caught by Pasindu Sooriyabandara off Dilshan Madushanka.

The pair added 96 runs for the sixth wicket to strengthen Pakistan's position after the hosts had lost five wickets for 253. Minhas, playing his first test, impressed with an attacking 52 from 72 balls, hitting nine fours and a six.

He was caught by Dhananjaya de Silva off Madushanka, with Pakistan reaching 434-8 at the time. Razaullah added ten before falling to Lahiru Kumara, while Saqib Khan remained unbeaten on nought when Pakistan declared. Fernando (3-107) and Madushanka (3-108) claimed three wickets apiece while Lahiru Kumara (1-104) and Milan Rathnayaka (1-72) finished with one wicket each.

Pakistan had earlier benefited from half-centuries by Tayyab Arif, Mohammad Taha and captain Babar Azam on the opening day after Sri Lanka elected to field.