Saturday 26 / October / 2024
Galle: Saud Shakeel's double ton has put Pakistan in a strong position with hopes of ending their winless streak that has lasted for six Tests now against Sri Lanka on Day 3 of the first Test at Galle International Stadium.
Pakistan's last win in Test cricket came in 2022 at this venue against Sri Lanka. But Shakeel's explosive 208* allowed the visitors to take a step closer to success by handing the Lankans a trail of 149 runs. At the end of Day 3, Sri Lanka ended with a score of 14/0, trailing by 135 runs, with Nishan Madushka and Dimuth Karunaratne unbeaten with scores of 8(12)* and 6(16)* respectively.
Shakeel, the Pakistan middle-order batter resumed at 69* with Agha Salman and the pair continued the visitors' recovery from 101/5. They were eventually separated when the visitors reached 278, Agha Salman fell for 83, but Shakeel carried on for Pakistan.
Nauman Ali joined hands with the 27-year-old batter and stayed with him for some time on the pitch. But Ramesh Mendis ensured that the batter couldn't continue his stay at the crease for long. He pinned him in front of the stumps for a score of 25 in the 74th over.
Shaheen Afridi came in and struck two beautiful boundaries to make his intentions clear right from the beginning. However, his stay was short-lived following a delivery from Vishwa Fernando. Shaheen tried to play along the line but missed the shot as the ball struck the back pad. He decided to review his decision but the DRS remained in favour of the bowler and he walked back to the pavilion for a score of 9 (14).
After that point, it was Shakeel who played the role of scoring the runs while Naseem Shah held on to his wicket closely. The partnership lasted for nearly 40 overs as Shah faced 78 deliveries.
Shakeel kept on with his approach to picking up boundaries at regular intervals. He even received a lifeline as he tried to slog-sweep but he couldn't generate enough power to clear the boundary. Mathews had a comfortable catch to take at the deep midwicket but failed to do so.
Overs passed and Pakistan's score kept ticking at a brisk pace. Shakeel reached the 150-run landmark in the 87th over. But two balls later one of the most debatable moments arrived as an appeal was made against Shah following a full-length delivery. The Pakistani batter offered no shot. The umpire decided to go against the appeal and Sri Lanka was left hanging without any reviews left.
Shah finally met his fate as Mendis broke through his defence and sent the bails flying off the stumps to bring Sri Lanka back into the game. Abrar Ahmed came in, but Mendis dispatched him early to restrict Pakistan to a score of 461.
Sri Lanka openers Karunaratne and Madushka ensured that the hosts didn't lose any wickets in the final overs of the day.
Shakeel was the last man standing for the visitors with a score of 208*. His double century is the 45th by a Pakistan batter in Test cricket and just the second in the last seven years. Abid Ali made 215* against Zimbabwe in Harare in 2021.
Shakeel is also only the second Pakistan batter to score a double-century in his first Test match away from home.
Brief Score: Sri Lanka 12 & 14/0 (Nishan Madushka 8*, Dimuth Karunaratne 6*) vs Pakistan 461 Saud (Shakeel 208*, Agha Salman 83; Ramesh Mendis 5-136).
