NATIONAL STADIUM (second day of five): Pakistan, with eight second-innings wickets in hand, are 180 runs ahead of India
AFTER four sessions of ball largely dominating bat — in stark contrast to the general tone of this series — it was back to business as usual as Pakistan set about building a substantial total in their second innings. They reached 173 for two at stumps, with Mohammad Yousuf, on 30, and Younis Khan, on 25, firmly ensconced in conditions that were not as bowlerfriendly as the opening day.
Younis and Yousuf, who boast 895 runs between them in the series, built on a platform established by Salman Butt and Imran Farhat, who batted with aggressive intent while adding 109 from only 146 balls. The India new-ball bowlers, after their heroics on Sunday, were insipid and inaccurate, and the breakthrough came from Sourav Ganguly bowling gentle medium pace. Butt was on 53 when Ganguly got one to swing in and when Farhat, who made a belligerent 57, top-edged a pull off Irfan Pathan, India enjoyed a second success before Younis and Yousuf added 51.
The day had not started as well for Pakistan, with Yuvraj Singh and Ganguly clattering 62 in the opening hour. Their fifth-wicket partnership was worth 81 when Ganguly mis-hit a pull off Abdul Razzaq on 37. The pick of the Pakistan attack was Mohammad Asif, who beat the bat regularly with seam movement and was rewarded with four wickets.
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The pick of them was Yuvraj, leg-before for 45 to a ball that pitched in line and straightened. At 181 for eight, India faced a sizeable deficit, but Pathan — his confidence boosted by that first-over hat-trick and five-wicket haul — thumped 40 from 51 balls before lifting Shahid Afridi to deep mid-off.
Pathan had infuriated Shoaib Akhtar by pummelling him over the backward square-leg boundary for six as India closed in on Pakistan’s total. However, the home team’s batsmen then unveiled some sparkling shots of their own, as the emphasis of an increasingly fascinating Test match moved from ball to bat.
SCOREBOARD FROM KARACHI
PAKISTAN: First Innings 245 (Kamran Akmal 113; I K Pathan 5 for 61)
Second Innings
Salman Butt lbw b Ganguly 53
Imran Farhat c Tendulkar b Pathan 57
*Younis Khan not out 25
Mohammad Yousuf not out 30
Extras (b 2, lb 3, nb 3) 8
Total (2 wkts, 39 overs) 173
FALL OF WICKETS: 1-109, 2-122.
BOWLING: Pathan 10-1-39-1; Zaheer Khan 10-1-44-0; Rudra Pratap Singh 8-0-38-0; Kumble 5-0-25-0; Ganguly 6-0-22-1.
INDIA: First Innings
V V S Laxman b Mohammad Asif 19
*R Dravid c Akmal b Mohammad Asif 3
V Sehwag c Akmal b Shoaib 5
S R Tendulkar b Razzaq 23
S C Ganguly c Mohammad Asif b Razzaq 34
Yuvraj Singh lbw b Mohammad Asif 45
†M S Dhoni c Akmal b Razzaq 13
I K Pathan c Mohammad Yousuf b Afridi 40
A Kumble lbw b Shoaib 7
Zaheer Khan c Akmal b Mohammad Asif 21
Rudra Pratap Singh not out 0
Extras (b 8, lb 3, nb 17) 28
Total (54.1 overs) 238
FALL OF WICKETS: 1-9, 2-14, 3-56, 4-56, 5-137, 6-165, 7-165, 8-181, 9-237.
BOWLING: Shoaib 16-3-70-2; Mohammad Asif 19.1-1-78-4; Razzaq 16-3-67-3; Afridi 3-0-12-1.
Umpires: D J Harper (Australia) and S J A Taufel (Australia).