Sri Lanka vs. Pakistan, 2nd Test, Day 3: Highlights, Scorecard and Report

Pakistan enjoyed a superb third day in the second Test against hosts Sri Lanka, fighting back with the bat to close on 171 for two in their second innings in Colombo.

The tourists are now just six runs behind Sri Lanka, who were put on the back foot thanks to determined knocks of 69 from Ahmed Shehzad and an unbeaten 64 from Azhar Ali. Younis Khan is also well set on 23 not out from 35 balls, giving Pakistan a platform to build a lead on the penultimate day.

			Runs	Minutes	Balls	4s	6s
Herath	not out		18	68	35	2	0
Kaushal	c Misbah-ul-Haq	b Yasir Shah	18	71	44	2	0
Chameera	c Younus Khan	b Yasir Shah	2	17	16	0	0
Extras		1nb 1w 6b 4lb	12
Total		all out (121.3 ovs)	315
				Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets
Riaz				9.0	2	19	0
Junaid Khan				29.0	5	89	1
Zulfiqar Babar				32.0	8	82	1
Yasir Shah				41.3	5	96	6
Hafeez				10.0	2	19	1

Sri Lanka closed on 309 for nine on Day 2 and added just six more runs to their overnight total before being bowled out for 315 on Saturday. It gave the hosts an intimidating 177-run lead after each side had completed their first innings. 

Sanka Gayashan/Associated Press

Yasir Shah took the final wicket for the visitors, finishing with figures of six wickets for 96, and after becoming the fastest ever bowler to reach 50 wickets for Pakistan on Friday, he was ticking off more landmarks on Day 3, per Bishen Jeswant of ESPN Cricinfo:

			Runs	Minutes	Balls	4s	6s
Hafeez	c Sangakkara	b Mathews	8	15	15	1	0
Shehzad	c Chandimal	b Prasad	69	215	154	4	1
Azhar Ali	not out		64	252	152	3	0
Younus Khan	not out		23	52	35	3	0
Extras		2nb 2w 2b 1lb	7
Total		for 2 (59.0 ovs)	171
Bowler				Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets
Prasad				13.3	1	46	1
Mathews				5.0	3	5	1
Herath				14.0	3	33	0
Chameera				8.3	1	28	0
Kaushal				18.0	2	56	0

Initially, the Pakistan response seemed as though it was going to crumble. Angelo Mathews enticed Mohammad Hafeez into flaying at one outside the off stump and Kumar Sangakkara gobbled up the chance.

Eranga Jayawardena/Associated Press

With one of their star batsmen gone for just eight, Pakistan were staring down the barrel. But Shehzad and Ali really dug in for a substantial stint of this engrossing day.

With a major deficit to chase but plenty of time in the game, both players were unashamedly cautious during their time at the crease, putting on a 120-run partnership in 44 overs. As noted by Cricbuzz, Shehzad played maturely during the day as he passed his half-century:

Thanks to the pair’s watchful batting, slowly Pakistan clawed their way toward parity, and at tea on Day 3, they were going well at 129 for one.

But the break seemed to knock the focus of Shehzad, who was gone with the first ball after the break. He went through a pull shot too early off the bowling of Dhammika Prasad, with wicketkeeper Dinesh Chandimal taking the chance. Suddenly, with the end of the day closing in, the hosts had some momentum pushing them once again.

Sanka Gayashan/Associated Press

Ali was able to calm things down alongside the experienced Khan, however. The two were pensive in their actions and seemed poised to take a lead prior to the close of play. But the night began to close in, and when the umpires got their light readers out, a premature end of play was inevitable, with Pakistan closing on 171 for two.

As noted by cricket expert Paul Dennett, Pakistan may well fancy their chances of stealing a victory here:

Needless to say, it’s imperative that they do. After winning the opening Test by a whopping 10 wickets, Pakistan can clinch this three-match series with a victory here. But with two wickets down and six runs still to make up, it goes without saying that there’s still a lot of work to do.

Much will depend on Ali. Shehzad deserves plaudits for his effort, but he’ll be a little disappointed not to have gone on and posted a three-figure score. Having put in the hard graft on Day 3 and 64 runs secured, Ali needs to put together a cornerstone innings to help Pakistan establish an advantage in this entertaining second Test.