Sri Lanka’s bowlers toiled without much success on a batting-friendly surface and the home team regretted their failure in the first innings where they were dismissed for 166 runs after picking the first bat.
Shafiq got a chance of life in the 42nd minute when Jayasuriya caught the ball in reply. In the 74th minute, Shafiq was removed for a leg-break in front of Jayasuriya’s wicket but the batter successfully overturned the decision.
Missed catches have cost Sri Lanka dearly in this series. Saud Shakil was dropped twice in Galle and scored a double hundred.
Shafiq added 89 runs for the third wicket to Babar Azam’s 39 before the Pakistan captain was removed by Jayasuriya for a leg-break in front of the wicket. Shafiq and Shakeel (57) made 109 runs for the fourth wicket.
Sri Lanka opted for the second new ball and Fernando trapped Shakeel for his third wicket in this innings.
Agha Salman, who fell short of a hundred in the first Test, was not going to let it go this time either. He reached his mark thanks to a hit that went between slip and gully and ended up on the boundary.
Bouncer Fernando hit Sarfaraz Ahmed on the helmet and the latter was out of the game in the 14th minute. Pakistan’s appeal to replace the player, who suffered concussion, was granted by match referee David Boon and Mohammad Rizwan was called into the team.
Rizwan scored 37 points and Agha Salman scored 132 points. Pakistan led 273-3 by lunch and 397-4 by the end of the day