RAWALPINDI: Pakistan capitalised on a ragged South African fielding display to post 259 for five on the opening day of the second and final Test here at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Monday.

Winning the toss for the second time in the series, captain Shan Masood and opener Abdullah Shafique guided the hosts to a strong position, each scoring half-centuries and sharing a valuable 111-run stand for the second wicket. But the day belonged as much to South Africa’s missed chances as to Pakistan’s discipline — the world champions dropped five catches, four of them off Abdullah.

Shan, who made a patient 87 off 176 balls, was dropped on 71, while Abdullah, reprieved on zero, 15 and 41, rode his luck to score 57 before edging Simon Harmer behind. The pair’s partnership steadied Pakistan after Imam-ul-Haq (17) was bowled by Harmer with a ball that pitched on leg and turned sharply to hit the top of off-stump.

South Africa could have had Abdullah off the fourth ball of the match when Tristan Stubbs grassed a regulation chance in the slips off Kagiso Rabada, but the pacer had to wait until the final overs of the day for his reward, trapping Mohammad Rizwan (19) leg-before with the second new ball. It was a fitting reflection of a frustrating day for the visitors, who repeatedly let Pakistan off the hook.

Shan’s innings was a study in control and concentration on a dry pitch that is expected to assist spin more as the match wears on. The left-hander collected most of his runs in singles but was quick to punish anything loose, striking two fours and three sixes, including two off Harmer and one towering blow against Senuran Muthusamy, who surprisingly bowled only four overs all day.

Abdullah, meanwhile, survived a series of anxious moments. Apart from the dropped chances, he saw a delivery from Marco Jansen graze his off-stump without dislodging the bails and successfully reviewed an lbw decision against Keshav Maharaj when replays showed an inside edge. His luck finally ran out on 57 when a faint tickle down the leg side was confirmed on review by UltraEdge, giving Harmer his second wicket.

Pakistan were 95-1 at lunch, and by tea had moved to 177-3. Shan held the innings together even as wickets fell at the other end. Babar Azam’s lean patch continued — he made 16 before a brilliant one-handed diving catch at forward short leg by Tony de Zorzi off Maharaj ended his stay. Babar, who last scored an international century in August 2023, has now gone 29 Test innings without a hundred.

Maharaj, returning from a groin injury that ruled him out of the first Test, was South Africa’s most effective bowler, finishing with 2-63 from 26 overs. His persistence finally paid off in the final session when Shan top-edged an attempted sweep to Marco Jansen at square leg. The dismissal, coming just as Pakistan’s captain seemed set for a century, gave South Africa some respite after a tiring day in the field.

By stumps, Saud Shakeel (42 not out) and Salman Ali Agha (10 not out) had seen off the second new ball to ensure Pakistan ended the day without further damage. The pair added 30 unbeaten runs for the sixth wicket, and with a total of 259 already on the board, Pakistan will eye a first-innings total in excess of 350 on Tuesday.

The tourists’ bowling effort was again dominated by spin, with Maharaj and Harmer (2-75) sharing 54 overs between them. The underuse of Muthusamy, who claimed a career-best 11 wickets in the first Test in Lahore, was puzzling. The left-armer bowled just two brief spells of two overs each, despite getting noticeable turn when he was used.

“It was a bit frustrating,” Maharaj admitted after play. “No one means to drop catches, but they do happen. We did well to control the scoring rate, and had we taken one more wicket before stumps, it could have been even.”

For Pakistan, Abdullah acknowledged his good fortune: “You need luck in cricket and I was lucky today. Catches get dropped, and we benefitted from that. Hopefully, we can capitalise tomorrow and post 350-plus.”

Pakistan made one change from the side that won the first Test in Lahore by 93 runs, handing a debut to 38-year-old left-arm spinner Asif Afridi, who replaced Hasan Ali. Afridi became Pakistan’s second-oldest Test debutant, behind Miran Bakhsh, who debuted at 47 against India in 1955.

South Africa, meanwhile, brought back Maharaj and Jansen, with Prenelan Subrayen and Wiaan Mulder making way. Jansen’s inclusion added balance, but his sharp spells with the new ball failed to produce results on a placid pitch.

Scoreboard

PAKISTAN (1st Innings):

Abdullah Shafique c Verreynne b Harmer 57

Imam ul-Haq b Harmer 17

Shan Masood c Jansen b Maharaj 87

Babar Azam c de Zorzi b Maharaj 16

Saud Shakeel not out 42

Mohammad Rizwan lbw Rabada 19

Salman Ali Agha not out 10

EXTRAS (B-6, LB-3, NB-2) 11

TOTAL (for five wickets, 91 overs) 259

FALL OF WICKETS: 1-35 (Imam), 2-146 (Abdullah), 3-167 (Babar), 4-212 (Shan), 5-246 (Rizwan)

STILL TO BAT: Shaheen Shah Afridi, Noman Ali, Asif Afridi, Sajid Khan BOWLING: Rabada 13-1-41-1, Jansen 16-6-42-0 (2nb), Maharaj 31-3-63-2, Harmer 23-1-75-2, Muthusamy 4-0-17-0, Markram 4-0-12-0

SOUTH AFRICA: A. Markram, R. Rickelton, T. Stubbs, T. de Zorzi, D. Brewis, K. Verreynne, S. Muthusamy, M. Jansen, S. Harmer, K. Maharaj, K. Rabada

Published in Dawn, October 21st, 2025