Shakeel double-hundred scripts Pakistan turnaround on Day 3
Pakistan find themselves in a commanding position in the Galle Test at the end of Day 3 after being 101-5 at one stage in response to Sri Lanka’s 312, courtesy a stunning double-century by Saud Shakeel and some important supporting roles lower down the order. In the final session, Pakistan started with a lead of 77, with Naseem Shah holding his ground at the other end while Shakeel scored fluently, and they stretched the lead to 149 in the end. Naseem struggled after Tea, given LBW once, which was reversed upon review, and soon after survived a stumping chance off Prabath Jayasuriya. Eventually, Shah was knocked over by Mendis for 6 off 78 balls, ably supporting Saud Shakeel. However, that left Shakeel in the 190s with the No. 11. Shakeel, however, got to the double-hundred with a boundary. Abrar now had the license to slog, and managed to hit a four and a six before being gobbled up by Ramesh Mendis (his fifth wicket). The catch was taken by Angelo Mathews, who had dropped Shakeel earlier in the day, when he was still short of the 150-run mark. Earlier, a 177-run stand between Shakeel and Agha Salman (83) rescued Pakistan from 101-5 to 278-6, a supporting role from Nauman Ali (25), took them into the lead as the Sri Lankan bowlers found it tough going in the second session. Amidst the fluency of Shakeel, Nauman took on the bowling towards the end of his innings, smashing three boundaries in six balls against Vishwa Fernando and Ramesh Mendis. The start of play was delayed due to a wet outfield, but after 45 minutes when play started, Shakeel and Salman continued to score fluently, heading towards Sri Lanka’s total. Despite a few wickets, Pakistan’s lower order showed resilience to get them into the lead with Shakeel who showed incredible fortitude in the face of adversity. Brief scores: Pakistan 461(Saud Shakeel 208*, Agha Salman 83, Ramesh Mendis 5-136) lead Sri Lanka 312 (Dhananjaya de Silva 122, Abrar Ahmed 3-68) and 14-0 (Nishan Madushka 8*, Dimuth Karunaratne 6*) by 135 runs
