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| 02 November 2004 | Tuesday | 18 Ramazan 1425 |
Pakistan level Test series after anxious moments
KARACHI, Nov 1: Pakistan survived some anxious moments before Shoaib Malik and Abdul Razzaq guided them to a six-wicket victory over Sri Lanka on Monday that levelled the two-Test series at the National Stadium.
Chasing a relatively simple target of 137 in 50 overs on the final day, Pakistan lost four wickets for 26 runs in 46 balls after openers Yasir Hameed and Imran Farhat had launched the innings with a partnership of 31.
At 57 for four, it seemed that Sri Lanka had done enough to suggest a wide open match. But Shoaib and Razzaq came together in an unbroken 82-run stand to see Pakistan through with 13 overs to spare.
In fact, Shoaib brought the match to a sudden end by smashing Rangana Herath, the slow left-armer, for 22 runs (4,6,4,4,0,4) in one over, all his scoring shots were directed towards wide mid-on and square-leg.
Shoaib, in the process, completed his second fifty in seven Tests as he raced to 53 off 60 balls, hitting in all six fours and one six. Razzaq's share in this winning effort was a vital 35 off 71 balls that included two boundaries and one six.
Marvan Atapattu set a prime example of fighting back when Sri Lanka took the field. Imran Farhat was caught low in the covers by the Sri Lankan skipper for 15 off the bowling of Herath after Chaminda Vaas had made the initial breakthrough by sending back Yasir (19), caught in the slips by Mahela Jayawardene.
Yousuf Youhana committed the cardinal sin of playing back to Herath and was palpably leg-before-wicket for one. The irresistible Vaas got rid of Younis Khan, the top-scorer in Pakistan's first innings, with Atapattu bringing off a stunning one-handed catch, diving backwards, at mid-off.
Pakistan, who had never lost to Sri Lanka in four Tests at this ground, retained their third position in the ICC Test Championship rankings while the Islanders stay fifth.
Inzamamul Haq, who has been troubled by a back problem that forced him to stay off the field for a better part of Sri Lankan second innings, termed the victory as a morale-booster for the forthcoming tour of Australia.
"Surely, this win is crucial in every aspect. We came into this match trailing in the series without the services of our strike bowlers (Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Sami). In that context, to win with a depleted bowling was creditable," Inzamam said after the game.
The Pakistan skipper was wholesome in his praise for leg-spinner Danish Kaneria, who was deservingly named Man-of-the-Match for bagging 10 for 190, including seven for 118 in 60 overs in the second innings.
"Danish is a rapidly improving bowler who has come of age in this game. The way he kept going in the second innings is a testimony to his stamina and consistency. He took the entire burden on his shoulders admirably."
Kaneria, meanwhile, attributed his success to the county stint with Essex.
"Playing in English conditions taught me a lot. The confidence level has increased which enabled me to bowl without the fear of being hit around.
"I just stuck to the basics and the results came naturally. There was not much in the pitch but because of my height, I was able to get extra bounce and made full use of the bowlers footmarks at the Scoreboard End."
Earlier, Sri Lanka held on tenaciously in the first session and lost just two wickets as they added 44 runs while surviving through 29 overs and three dropped catches to reach 405 for nine at lunch.
Kaneria struck with his fourth ball of the day when he sent back Farveez Maharoof (3) with a great delivery. The bemused batsman played forward but the ball curled past his forward stroke to hit the top of his off-stump after pitching just outside leg-stump.
Herath hung on grimly for 63 minutes in the company of Vaas as the ninth-wicket pair yielded 23 runs.
Yousuf Youhana, deputizing for Inzamam in the field since Saturday evening, grassed a simple catch at short-cover when Herath aimed an ambitious drive off Razzaq.
Rana Naveed took the final two wickets. He held a return catch after the ball had crashed onto Herath's boot off the inside edge of the bat. TV umpire Asad Rauf's assistance was sought to adjudicate the dismissal.
Last man Dilhara Fernando nicked a catch to Kamran Akmal behind the stumps in the second over after the lunch interval, leaving Vaas stranded at 32, an innings that lasted two and half hours.
Vaas also joined the elite club of all-rounders when his first two runs enabled the 30-year-old left-hander to complete the Test double of 2,000 runs and 200 wickets. He is the 11th member of the club following in the footsteps of Richie Benaud, Ian Botham, Chris Cairns, Richard Hadlee, Imran Khan, Kapil Dev, Shaun Pollock, Gary Sobers, Shane Warne and Wasim Akram.
Sri Lanka on the previous two tours of Pakistan, emerged victorious by 2-1 each in the 1995-96 and 1999-2000 seasons.
Atapattu was naturally disappointed at Sri Lanka's failure to make a hat trick of series victories in Pakistan.
"This result is pretty disappointing. But on the whole, the guys performed very well in every game they played. The way they fought until the last ball of the match was commendable.
"One thing we have learnt is to never give up hope. Unfortunately, the target was not that big enough to defend. However, to get back into the match after being bowled out for 208 on the first day was quite satisfying."
Atapattu described the losing of toss as the turning point of the match. "Definitely, the toss played a very significant role in the outcome of this Test because the pitch played excellently from the second day onwards."
However, he praised the contribution of Sanath Jayasuriya, named Man-of-the-Series for his 424 runs including that masterful 253 in the first Test at Faisalabad. "Sanath had an excellent series after a lean start in the one-dayers. But being such an experienced player, he showed what a great player he is. His presence infused the spirit of fighting among our boys."
Scoreboard
Sri Lanka (Ist innings) 208
Pakistan (Ist innings) 478
Sri Lankan (2nd innings) (overnight 361-7)
Sanath Jayasuriya c Shoaib b Kaneria 107
Marvan Atapattu c Yasir b Kaneria 25
Kumar Sangakkara c Akmal b Naveed 138
Mahela Jayawardene c Yasir b Kaneria 32
Thilan Samaraweera c Younis b Kaneria 22
Jehan Mubarak c Imran b Kaneria 2
Romesh Kaluwitharana b Kaneria 7
Chaminda Vaas not out 32
Farveez Maharoof b Kaneria 3
Rangana Herath c & b Naveed 6
Dilhara Fernando c Akam b Naveed 4
Extras (b6, lb10, nb12) 28
Total (all out in 141.5 overs) 406
Fall of wicket: 1-117, 2-170, 3-253, 4-333, 5-351, 6-359, 7-360, 8-364, 9-387
Bowling: Rana Naveed-ul-Hasan 24.5-43-83-1 Riaz Afridi 12-3-0-45-0 Abdul Razzaq 29-8-99-0 (7nb) Danish Kaneria 60-20-118-7 Shoaib Malik 16-5-0-45-0 (3nb)
Pakistan (2nd innings)
Yasir Hameed c Atapattu b Herath 15
Imran Farhat c Jayawardene b Vaas 19
Younis Khan c Atapattu b Vaas 14
Yousuf Youhana lbw b Herath 1
Shoaib Malik not out 53
Abdul Razzaq not out 35
Extras (lb1, nb1) 2
Total (for four wkts in 37 overs) 139
Fall of wkt: 1-31, 2-43, 3-43, 4-57
Bowling: Chaminda Vaas 14-0-45-2 Farveez Maharoof 2-0-13-0 Rangana Herath 15-2-63-2 Sanath Jayasuriya 3-0-6-0 Dilhara Fernando 3-0-11-0 (1nb)
Man-of-the-Match: Danish Kaneria (Pakistan)
Man-of-the-Series: Sanath Jayasuriya (Sri Lanka)
Umpires: Steve Bucknor (West Indies) Billy Bowden (New Zealand).
TV Umpire: Saleem Badar (Pakistan).
Match referee: Jeff Crowe (New Zealand).
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