Fifties from Oshada Fernando, Kusal Mendis and Dinesh Chandimal put Sri Lanka in command

Nawaz and Yasir both took eight wickets, but the hosts now have enough runs and precedent to feel secure.

Pakistan 218 is trailed by 333 runs by Sri Lanka’s 222 and 329 for 9 (Chandimal 86, Kusal 76, Oshada 64, Nawaz 5-88, and Yasir 3-122).

With their 91-run partnership, Kusal Mendis and Oshada Fernando laid the groundwork for Sri Lanka’s success. The middle order then propelled Sri Lanka forward in a crucial middle session, and Dinesh Chandimal gave Sri Lanka the upper hand in the opening Galle Test by scoring 86 not out off 121 balls and putting up spirited stands with the tail.

Although Yasir Shah bowled some fantastic legbreaks and Mohammad Nawaz wheeled his way to a first-ever five-wicket haul, Pakistan’s position in this match is becoming more and more precarious. They are currently 333 runs down on a surface that is significantly turning, and they still need to take one opposition wicket. Galle has the most successful chase at 268 and the highest fourth-inning score of any kind at 300.

Sri Lanka’s innings was knitted together by half-centuries from Fernando, Kusal, and Chandimal, and the morning’s third-wicket stand prepared Sri Lanka for a successful batting day. At this point, Sri Lanka was batting very normally, with Fernando moving down the track to generate single alternatives on either side of the pitch and Mendis playing more with his back foot to take advantage of the shorter deliveries that the Pakistani spinners were dishing out much too frequently.

Before lunch, there were a few big shots here and there, like at the halfway point of the practice when Fernando sprinted down the track and blasted Yasir into the sightscreen. However, the majority of the time, the hitters were content to wait for the bowlers to make mistakes, as they frequently did, failing to create pressure and losing runs to Kusal’s sweep or Fernando’s cuts. Near the conclusion of the first session, Fernando reached his half-century but was dismissed shortly after the break, allowing Nawaz to slip.

However, Sri Lanka picked up the pace after Kusal scored his own fifty early in the second session, in part because of him. His aggressive sweeping and easy singles into the outfield continued until, on run-out at number 76, Yasir delivered the game’s greatest ball—a quick, big-spinning legbreak that pitched well outside leg but ripped to beat the outside edge and clip the off stump.

Mohomed Nawaz took a 5 wicket haul

The middle-order hitters for Sri Lanka, who had already amassed a respectable total, were unfazed by these defeats. They continued to attack Pakistan’s bowlers throughout the afternoon session, never with more fervor than when Dhananjaya de Silva joined Chandimal at the crease. They scored 40 runs together off just 36 balls, including three sixes and two fours. De Silva was dismissed by another terrific delivery from Yasir that rushed him, but Niroshan Dickwella also played a quick but brief knock to keep Sri Lanka moving forward.

By tea, they had scored 4.4 runs per over for the entire session and were ahead by 261 runs despite being seven runs down.

However, it wasn’t until a more leisurely evening session that Sri Lanka really took the match by the collar. In possibly the best shape of his life, Chandimal prodded Sri Lanka along with some latecomers, who cheerfully held on for him. He put on a stand totalling 41 runs with Maheesh Theekshana for the ninth wicket before adding 21 runs with Prabath Jayasuriya. He struck out at more over 70 while moving slowly yet effectively, only making four fours and two sixes throughout the day. He had also scored 76 runs in the opening innings and made 206 runs against Australia last week.

Only Pakistani bowler Nawaz consistently produced challenging spells; although Yasir sometimes occasionally bowled unplayable deliveries, he tended to drag his length down too frequently. In his second over of the day, Nawaz had already dismissed nightwatchman Kasun Rajitha with a slider, forced Angelo Mathews to top-edge a cut shot by getting the ball to bite off the surface, dismissed Dickwella for an under-edged reverse sweep, and snuck a quick one on to Ramesh Mendis’ off stump.

He finished the day with 5 for 88, while Yasir went at 4.20 an over and finished with 3 for 122. Only one over of seam was bowled by Pakistan’s quicks during the afternoon session, and Naseem Shah wasn’t allowed to bat until the 75th over.

Hasan Ali stood out among the quick bowlers, giving up just 15 runs in his ten overs. Late in the day, he was rewarded with the dismissal of Theekshana.

(Curtesy crick info)

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