Sports
Pakistan and Sri Lanka Draw First Test After Weather Interruptions
Rain and bad light force a draw in Rawalpindi as Saud Shakeel anchors Pakistan's second-innings resistance.
By Headlinne · Compiled from reporting by Yahoo Sports, Times of India and Hindu
Rain and bad light forced a draw between Pakistan and Sri Lanka on the fifth and final day of the opening cricket test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Friday.
Pakistan reached 284-8 in their second innings for an overall lead of 272 before both teams shook hands and called off the match.
Saud Shakeel led the batting effort with a gritty 97 runs, narrowly missing out on a century after facing 210 balls before being bowled by Lahiru Kumara.
The draw marks the first stalemate for Pakistan in the current World Test Championship cycle after nine previous matches.
Sri Lanka secured a slender 12-run lead in the first innings after posting 446 in response to Pakistan's declared total of 434-9.
The visitors benefited from a massive 249-run partnership between Dhananjaya de Silva, who scored 167, and Kusal Mendis, who contributed 119.
Debut fast bowler Saqib Khan starred for the hosts by claiming 7 wickets for 130 runs in 34 overs, restricting Sri Lanka's lower order.
Pakistan suffered a shaky start to their second innings under overcast conditions as Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis deployed innovative fielding tactics.
Babar Azam scored 34 and Salman Ali Agha added 13 before both fell to catches at short backward square leg.
Shakeel then shared a crucial 92-run partnership with Ghazi Ghori, who made 35, to rescue the home side from 125-5.
Reflecting on the match, Kusal Mendis said, "I am happy with how we batted and with our bowling in the second innings."
The Sri Lankan captain added, "Pakistan laid out a good wicket and there was moisture, (but) we did not bowl well initially and I feel that's where we need to learn."
Weather interruptions caused significant delays throughout the five days, with 117 overs lost to rain and poor visibility.
The second and final test of the series has been relocated from Lahore to the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium due to worsening smog levels.
That match is scheduled to begin on next Tuesday.
Reporting from
- Yahoo Sports
Pakistan leads by 139 after Babar and Agha fall in Sri Lanka fielding trap on 5th day of 1st test
- Times of India
Saqib Khan's dream Test debut goes in vain as rain forces Pak-SL into a draw
- The Hindu
Pakistan’s gritty Shakeel again misses out on a century in drawn test against Sri Lanka
How this article was made: Headlinne wrote it with AI from the 3 reports listed above. Direct quotes are checked word for word against those reports, every number appears in at least one of them, and no other sentence is copied from one. Photos are from those reports and credited to them. Each report’s page on Headlinne links to the outlet’s original.