Angelo Mathews and Dilruwan Perera both hit 90s as Sri Lanka declared on 428/9 to take firm control of the match and the series.

by Pakpassion Staff (17th January 2014)

Toss: Sri Lanka won the toss and chose to bat.

Teams:

Pakistan: 1. Khurram Manzoor, 2. Ahmed Shehzad, 3. Azhar Ali, 4. Younis Khan, 5. Misbah-ul-Haq (c), 6. Asad Shafiq, 7. Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 8. Abdur Rehman, 9. Mohammad Talha, 10. Saeed Ajmal, 11. Junaid Khan


Sri Lanka: 1. Dimuth Karunaratne, 2. Kaushal Silva, 3. Kumar Sangakkara, 4. Mahela Jayawardene, 5. Dinesh Chandimal, 6. Angelo Mathews, 7. Prasanna Jayawardene, 8. Rangana Herath, 9. Shaminda Eranga 10. Suranga Lakmal, 11. Dilruwan Perera

 

Pakistan would have started the day knowing they would need quick wickets if they were to retain hopes of squaring the Test series and Mohammad Talha struck in the sixth over of the day, his pace hurrying Prasanna Jayawardene into a pull shot which was taken well by Junaid Khan at long leg. Talha bowled an impressive spell first-up, troubling the batsmen with his bounce and speed through the air, pushing the batsmen back into the crease in his hostile spell. 

The over before the wicket, Pakistan had referred an lbw decision off Rehman, but the ball was adjudged to be clipping the leg stump and the on-field umpires decision stood. Mathews was unphased and continued to make the bowlers work hard, blocking the majority of the balls and occasionally deciding to cut loose with the odd boundary. 

His partner Perera, on Test debut, was little more aggressive, hitting Rehman for six over long on. However, the Sri Lankan tactics for low-risk cricket were clear and entirely justifiable given the 1-0 lead they hold in the series. 

At Lunch, Sri Lanka were 302/6 with captain Mathews on 67 and Perera 29.

 

Much of the same in the afternoon session, as Perera and Mathews continued to look compact, punctuating the defensive shots with a few boundaries off the spinners Ajmal and Rehman. 

However, Junaid Khan, who had found some reverse swing before lunch, was brought back into the attack and took two wickets in two balls in the first over of his spell. The first to go was Angelo Mathews, who fell again in the 90s after scoring a 256-ball 91. It was a grafting innings and one which took his side closer to the series victory. Junaid’s next ball swung in late and rapped new man Herath on the pads and the umpire gave the lbw decision with no hesitation, the referral upholding the original decision. 

Junaid struck five overs before the interval but at Tea, Sri Lanka were in a commanding position - 359/8 with Perera on 54 and Eranga 2.

 

Things didn't go well for Pakistan in the final session as Perera began to attack and Eranga proved hard to get rid of. The pair put on a partnership of over 50 as Sri Lanka reached the important landmark of 400 midway through the session after Perera took 13 off a Saeed Ajmal over. 28 runs later, Captain Angelo Mathews called his troops back as Sri Lanka declared on 428/9 to give Pakistan a bat for 6 overs on Day 2. Khurram Manzoor and Ahmed Shehzad opened the batting for Pakistan, they watched out those 6 overs as Pakistan ended the day at 19/0.

Day One: Fall Of Wickets

Morning Session
6-239 HAPW Jayawardene, 95.1 overs 

Afternoon Session
7-351 Mathews, 148.3 overs,
8-351 Herath, 148.4 overs

Evening Session
9-423 Perera, 169.4 overs
 

Pakistan vs. Sri Lanka in Dubai, 3rd Test, day three to commence at 6:00AM GMT on 18th January, 2014.

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