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De Silva and Kusal Mendis add 249 unbeaten as Sri Lanka reach 404 for 4 in Rawalpindi
Dhananjaya de Silva made 167 not out and captain Kusal Mendis 117 not out on day three of the first Test, taking Sri Lanka to within 30 runs of Pakistan's 434 with six wickets in hand.
Key points
- Dhananjaya de Silva and Kusal Mendis shared an unbroken 249 for the fifth wicket on Wednesday.
- Sri Lanka ended day three on 404 for 4, trailing Pakistan's 434 for 9 declared by 30 runs.
- Kusal Mendis scored a century in his first Test as captain, his 11th Test hundred.
Sri Lanka took control of the first Test in Rawalpindi on Wednesday, November 11, as Dhananjaya de Silva and captain Kusal Mendis put together an unbroken stand of 249 for the fifth wicket. At stumps Sri Lanka were 404 for 4, only 30 runs behind Pakistan’s first innings of 434 for 9 declared, with six wickets still in hand.
Play was ended early by fading light, with 23 overs of the day unbowled. Sri Lanka lost one wicket in the whole day, adding 290 runs to their overnight 114 for 3, and the follow-on, a worry when the day began, is no longer in the picture.
De Silva reaches his 14th hundred
De Silva resumed on 22 and finished on 167 not out from 241 balls, with 20 fours. He reached his hundred off 151 balls, his 14th in Tests and his fourth against Pakistan, and went past 4,500 Test runs in his 70th match.
He was dropped on 38 when Saud Shakeel missed a chance at first slip, the only real opening the Pakistan bowlers got from either batter all day. He was still six short of his career best when the light went.
A century in the first Test as captain
Kusal Mendis, leading Sri Lanka for the first time in a Test, finished on 117 not out from 188 balls, with 10 fours and four sixes. It is his 11th Test century, and he reached it off 152 balls, hitting two straight sixes off debutant Arafat Minhas along the way.
Reports on the day describe it as the first century by a Sri Lankan in his first Test as captain, and the second against Pakistan by any player on captaincy debut, after England’s Andrew Strauss at Lord’s in 2006. Mendis was named captain when the squad for this tour was announced on October 13, as we reported.
The pair came together on the second evening with the score at 114 for 3, after Pasindu Sooriyabandara had gone for a duck and Dinesh Chandimal for one. Lahiru Udara’s 42 on day two was the only other resistance before that.
The morning session
Pakistan’s one success came early. Kamindu Mendis, resuming on 40, added 18 more for 58 from 131 balls before Mohammad Abbas had him caught behind by Ghazi Ghori in the 42nd over. He and de Silva had added 90 for the fourth wicket.
After that the two set-in batters scored freely against an attack that had little experience. Razaullah, who has played one Test, went for 127 runs without a wicket from 23 overs, and Minhas conceded 92 without a wicket. Abbas ended with 2 for 64 and Saqib Khan 2 for 105, both of whose wickets came across days two and three.
How the Test stands
Pakistan’s innings of 434 for 9 declared was built on four half-centuries and a 93 from Shakeel: Tayyab Arif made 57, Minhas 52 on debut, Mohammad Taha 51 and captain Babar Azam 50. It looked a commanding total when they declared on Tuesday, with Sri Lanka 114 for 3. Pakistan now have to break an unbeaten pair that has made the pitch look easy.
The surface is still good for batting, and de Silva and Kusal Mendis resume on the fourth morning.
What happens next
Day four begins on Thursday, November 12. Sri Lanka go ahead as soon as they add 31 runs, and the visitors have not said when they plan to declare. The Test is scheduled to finish on Friday, November 13. The second Test begins in Lahore on November 17.