Shafique chips away at target but Jayasuriya’s four-for keeps SL hopes alive

Pakistan 218 and 298 for 5 (Shafique 139*, Jayasuriya 4-113) need another 44 runs to beat Sri Lanka 222 and 337

But the game now is very much Pakistan’s to lose. They need 44 further runs, with five wickets still in hand. Their batting order is a little short for this match, but Mohammad Nawaz is an allrounder, and, as seen in the first innings, even No. 11 Naseem Shah can hang around with a senior partner.

The morning began with the closest of close calls. Mohammad Rizwan came forward to a Jayasuriya delivery, and saw it slip between bat and pad and pass mere millimetres over the off bail. Had that wicket fallen, there may have been the potential for panic to slip in, but Pakistan’s overnight pair quickly set about calming fears instead. Rizwan used the sweep liberally, while Shafique continued to defend expertly – the thing he had done best on day four.

With Rizwan striking a couple of breezy boundaries through the covers early on, and with runs coming from singles and leg byes, Pakistan whittled the target down steadily. There were some close-ish lbw shouts. In the third over of the day, Jayasuriya hit Shafique on the back leg, and Sri Lanka appealed voraciously, only to be turned down. They reviewed and the ball was projected to be passing over the stumps.

The hosts lost another review when they sent up a turned-down caught-behind decision against Rizwan several overs later – Jayasuriya the bowler again – and have now burned all three.

Just after the drinks break, Shafique was almost out when he took off for a run, thinking that the spinning delivery that had beat the keeper was sliding away towards the rope. Dhananjaya de Silva had caught it at slip though, and shied at the stumps from close range. If he had hit, Shafique would have been out for 128.

It wasn’t long after that Jayasuriya did manage to finally get Rizwan, sliding one low into his front pad when the batter played for turn. Rizwan’s 40 off 74 had substantially raised Pakistan’s chances of victory, however, and he had put on 71 alongside Shafique.

Salman had some nervous moments in his 35-ball stay, but he scratched his way to 12, even hitting a reverse-swept four off Ramesh Mendis. He reviewed his caught behind (Rizwan had reviewed his dismissal as well), leaving Pakistan with only one available.

Jayasuriya continued to be Sri Lanka’s best wicket-taking threat, but he did not have great support from either Ramesh Mendis or Maheesh Theekshana. Dhananjaya, who bowled tightly, was better at creating pressure for Jayasuriya at the other end. Jayasuriya is on 4 for 113 for the innings.