Saud Shakeel dismissed on 93 vs SL at Rawalpindi | PC- AFP
Pakistan declared the innings on 434/9 on Day 2 of the first Test match against Sri Lanka at Rawalpindi. The hosts were backed by fantastic batting. As many as five batters, including three debutants, scored half-centuries, although none of them could convert into a three-figure mark.
The stylish southpaw, Saud Shakeel, turned up to be the star with the bat for the Men in Green, with a 93 off 199 balls that included nine glorious boundaries.
Saud Shakeel equals Babar Azam's tally with 3rd missed Test ton
Saud Shakeel was seven runs short of slamming a fifth Test hundred, but Asitha Fernando had his number.
As he was dismissed on a nervous nineties, it was Shakeel’s third dismissal between scores of 90 and 99. As a result, he has equalised Babar Azam’s tally in the longest format.
Inzamam-ul-Haq, 8, holds the record for the most dismissals in the nineties by any Pakistani batter.
Pakistan's best batter in the longest format since his debut, Shakeel has scored more runs than any other Pakistan player since donning the white shirt.
Since December 2022, the southpaw has racked up 2099 runs in 51 innings at an average of 43.72. Next on the list are Babar Azam (1699 runs), Salman Ali Agha (1641 runs), and Shan Masood (1548 runs).
Saud Shakeel misses century, but Pakistan in solid state in Rawalpindi
Although Saud Shakeel missed a deserving century, his innings put Pakistan in a cruising position.
Came to the crease when the team were at 159/3, he took the charge after Babar Azam’s dismissal and never let the Lanka bowlers put pressure on a batting line-up with three debutants.
Shakeel was involved in two massive partnerships: a 96-run stand with Ghazi Ghori and 44 runs with all-rounder Arafat Minhas.
As a result, Pakistan came into a solid position as he declared their innings after Razaullah's departure.
With the ball, the hosts have already started asking serious questions, with Mohammad Abbas taking an early wicket of Pasindu Sooriyabandara on duck.
