Pakistan look to be more purposeful (Preview)

For the major part of the four days, Pakistan dominated the first test only to squander the ascendancy in the last four sessions of the game. Poor fielding that saw them spill down six regulation chances proved to be the main undoing and defensive mindset from their batsmen didn’t help matters either. With the result, the game was drawn that Pakistan should have won.

For Sri Lanka, Kumar Sangakkara and wicketkeeper batsman Prasana Jayawerdena got them out of jail. Aided by sloppy Pakistan fielding, Sangakkara hit a defiant double ton and Prasana thwarted Pakistan with a terrific century.

It was Pakistan’s game till the duo put up a marathon resistance. Led by rookie left arm pacer Junaid Khan, Pakistan pacers had given their side early command by getting the Lankans all-out under-200 score in the first innings before Taufeeq Umar’s 236 helped the home team to post a huge total. All the batsmen scored at a crawling pace though denting their own cause big time. And, butter fingers from the fielders sealed the fate for them.

Now the action shifts to Dubai, and, conditions aren’t going to be any different from Abu Dhabi. Weather will be very hot and bowlers will have to toil it hard to get batsmen out. Despite ending in draw, both teams had enough positives from the game to feel good about.

Sri Lanka though would be a confident unit for managing a draw when defeat looked eminent. Their lead spinner Rangana Herath bowled well grabbing six-for in the first innings and looked the most threatening from the pack. Left arm pacer Chanaka Welegedera too had a good outing. Team management would want bowling to fire as a unit and somehow get twenty Pakistani wickets.

On the other hand, all Pakistani bowlers bowled well and made life difficult for Lankan batsmen. Junaid gave account of his talent admirably well, Aizaz Cheema running in hard and giving it everything was a refreshing sight and senior pro Umar Gul got better and better as the game progressed. Saeed Ajmal bowled well but nothing much show in the results.

For Pakistan to make more damage with the bat, their batsmen need to show urgency at the crease. Keeping score board ticking over with occupation of the crease should be a priority. Asad Shafiq’s dormant approach to the batting when some quick runs were needed might prompt team management to bring in experienced Shoaib Malik in the playing eleven.

Misbah-ul Haq’s men will have to field well to back their bowlers. Had it not for their below average effort in the field, they could have well have gone 1-0 up in the series already.

Lankans will go into second fixture as a confident bunch after securing a draw and would want to bat well in the first innings. With debutant Nuwan Pradeep failing to deliver, Lankans might be give Damikka Prasad a chance to prove his mettle or think of replacing the pacer with a spinner.

For Pakistan, it is a case of being purposeful all-round and make full use of their advantage in the bowling department.

Pakistan Squad: Mohammad Hafeez, Taufeeq Umar, Imran Farhat, Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Asad Shafiq, Adnan Akmal (wk), Shoaib Malik, Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Aizaz Cheema, Wahab Raiz, Umar Gul, Junaid Khan

Sri Lanka Squad: Tillakaratne Dilshan (Capt), Angelo Mathews, Tharanga Paranavitana, Lahiru Thirimanne, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Prasanna Jayawardene (wk), Dinesh Chandimal (wk), Rangana Herath, Suraj Randiv, Chanaka Welegedara, Suranga Lakmal, Kosala Kulasekara, Dammika Prasad, Nuwan Pradeep, Kaushal Silva (wk).