Wednesday Nov 11, 2026
Wednesday Nov 11, 2026
Wednesday, 11 November 2026 00:10 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
RAWALPINDI: Despite another day lost to bad light and nearly 45 overs lost in total, Pakistan thoroughly dominated the first two days of the first cricket Test against Sri Lanka at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium here yesterday.
Sri Lanka finished the second day on 114-3 in reply to Pakistan’s first innings of 434-9 declared to trail by 320 runs and require a further 121 runs to avoid a follow-on. Kamindu Mendis was unbeaten on 40 and with him was former captain Dhananjaya de Silva on 22. On these two rests Sri Lanka’s chances of edging closer to Pakistan’s total.
Pakistan started the day well from 281-5 with Saud Shakeel and Ghazi Ghori carrying their sixth wicket partnership to worth 96. Shakeel looked all set for a well-deserved ton before unfortunately strangling one down the leg side to provide Asitha Fernando with his 100th Test wicket.
Sri Lanka toiled hard on this pitch which had a bit in it for the pacers, but there were runs on offer as well and Shakeel ensured that he cashed in. Ghori gave him good support but missed out on a maiden Test half-century when he was dismissed for 48 (72 balls, 2 fours). Arafat Minhas was troubled by the short stuff, but he batted positively to make an impressive contribution on debut, throwing his bat around to bring up a fifty – 52 off 72 balls (9 fours, 1 six). Razaullah chipped in with a couple of big hits before both fell in quick succession prompting Babar Azam to declare nine down and have a crack at Sri Lanka for an hour before tea.
The Pakistani pacers made immediate inroads, snatching two early wickets, including the prized scalp of Dinesh Chandimal for one and Pasindu Sooriyabandara without scoring. The skills of Mohammad Abbas and Saqib Khan coupled with disciplined line and length bowling brought the green wicket alive all of a sudden. It seemed to have enough spice for the pacers to continue to extract movement out of it, which was something the Sri Lankan bowlers struggled with, largely due to their wayward bowling.
Lahiru Udara and Kamindu Mendis survived a few nervy moments, including a review and a run-out opportunity before tea. Udara lived dangerously to score 42 off 52 balls (7 fours) before edging a straight forward catch to the wicket-keeper to give debutant Saqib Khan his second wicket after the break. Kamindu Mendis and Dhananjaya de Silva saw Sri Lanka through without any further lapses.
