The second Test between Pakistan and Sri Lanka began at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo with Pakistan in charge. Sri Lanka, who won the toss and decided to play, quickly ran into problems, losing four wickets for only 36 runs. Pakistan’s early success was greatly aided by Naseem Shah’s superb bowling, which made the new ball a talking point.
Although Dhananjaya De Silva and Dinesh Chandimal were able to put together an 85-run partnership, the rest of Sri Lanka’s batting order was ineffective.
The mysterious spinner from Pakistan, Abrar Ahmed, displayed his miraculous ball handling abilities and took four wickets. After two sessions, Sri Lanka was eventually knocked out for 166.
In response, Pakistan suffered a setback when Imam ul Haq was lost early in their innings. But the alliance between Abdullah Shafique and Shan Masood turned out to be reliable. The pressure on Sri Lankan bowlers was maintained by both hitters’ effective strokeplay. By declining to review Masood’s lbw and dropping Shafique’s catch, Sri Lanka lost out on a few chances.
Shafique kept impressing and hit his own fifty while Masood fell shortly after reaching a half-century. With the aid of a successful review against a lbw ruling, he managed to get through a stressful situation. Pakistan trailed by just 21 runs as play came to an end, and Shafique was still undefeated at 74.
Day 2
Will see Pakistan’s innings resumed by Babar Azam and Abdullah Shafique because Day 1 was cut short owing to poor lighting. After winning the opening Test at Galle by a thrilling four wickets, Pakistan’s captain, Babar Azam, will be hungry to complete a rare 2-0 Test series whitewash against the hosts.
Day two promises to be an interesting one as Sri Lanka looks to tie the series and Pakistan looks to continue its dominance. The extended format of the game will be exciting for cricket fans to watch as both teams compete for supremacy.
MATCH SUMMARY
Sri Lanka v Pakistan, 2nd Test, Colombo, 24 July 2023
Sri Lanka 166/10 (48.4 overs: Dhananjaya de Silva 57 (68), Chandimal 34 (60); Fernando 2/41)
Pakistan 145-2 (28.3 overs: Shafique 74* (99), Masood 51 (47); Abrar 4/69, Naseem 3/41)
Pakistan trail Sri Lanka by 21 runs
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