Ryan Harris bowled Australia to within sight of victory on the third day in Galle, but a fighting half-century from Mahela Jayawardene ensured the match would spill into the fourth day. Sri Lanka needed 379 to win, which would be their highest Test chase, but on a wearing pitch they had little chance of a miracle and by stumps they were teetering at 120 for 5 on another day that was dominated by the Australians.
Australia’s lower order added 95 valuable runs to their overnight total after rain delayed the start of play until after lunch, and when Harris struck with the first ball, it seemed only a matter of time until the victory was confirmed. But as the sun set, a 52-run partnership from Jayawardene (57 not out) and Angelo Mathews frustrated Australia, who knew that with one more wicket they would be into Sri Lanka’s tail.
Jayawardene had played a composed innings, handling the difficult conditions better than any of his team-mates, while Mathews, on 32, provided solid support. They had come together after Harris picked up the third of his wickets by bowling Prasanna Jayawardene, who recorded his second pair in Test cricket, both of which had come against Australia.
Another man with a poor record against Australia, Thilan Samaraweera, also made a duck when he tried to leave a Mitchell Johnson delivery outside off but tickled a catch behind. Kumar Sangakkara (17) was the victim of a brute of a delivery from Shane Watson, who used the angle from around the wicket and the pitch’s variable bounce to give Sangakkara a bumper that he couldn’t avoid.
The ball hit the bat and lobbed to Michael Hussey at gully, and it was the key wicket for Australia after they got rid of both openers early. Harris gave Australia the best possible start when he had Paranavitana lbw from the first ball of the innings.
The batsman decided against reviewing Aleem Dar’s decision, which is usually the wisest course of action, but on this occasion he would have been saved as the ball pitched a fraction outside leg. Sangakkara survived an equally confident shout from the Australians from the next delivery, and they did review Dar’s not-out call only to discover the ball had again pitched a hair’s breadth outside leg.
It wasn’t long, though, until Harris struck again, nipping the ball off the seam and through the big gap between bat and pad left by the captain Dilshan, who for the second time in the match set his team-mates a terrible example. Application was required but Australia’s lower order had shown that runs could still be scored on the dusty surface.
Following the early dismissal of Johnson, who top-edged an attempted slog sweep off Rangana Herath, the final three pairs added 80 runs. Usman Khawaja looked much less nervous than in the first innings and made a composed 26, which featured some fine footwork against the spinners. He advanced to Herath and drove handsomely for a boundary through cover, and lofted a six over long-on from the bowling of Suraj Randiv, in both cases smothering the turn by getting to the pitch of the ball.
It took the introduction of Chanaka Welegedara to end Khawaja’s stay with an inswinger, the batsman plumb lbw as he walked across his stumps. However, Harris, Trent Copeland and Nathan Lyon kept the runs flowing, Harris striking the ball confidently in his 23 until he delivered a caught-and-bowled to Herath, who finished with a career-best 5 for 79.
Copeland (23 not out) and Lyon (13) put on 32 for the final wicket, sweeping like a pair of janitors as Herath bowled too far down leg side. The last wicket came when Lyon skied a catch to long-on from the bowling of Dilshan, but by then the Sri Lankans had already lost any realistic chance of victory.
Their best fourth-innings chase was 352 against South Africa in Colombo five years ago. Even the most ardent Sri Lankan fan would have to acknowledge that it’s not a record likely to be broken in Galle.
Source: Cricinfo
Pakistan solid in reply to hosts’ 412
Pakistan looked deflated in the morning but an energetic burst from the debutant Aizaz Cheema in the lead-up to tea helped helped them recover some lost ground. They then surged past 100 in the final session as the action shifted up a gear, after having meandered under Mawoyo’s watch.
Hafeez was entertaining and elegant, but also enjoyed a slice of luck against the new-ball pair of Brian Vitori and Kyle Jarvis, who repeatedly attacked the stumps. Jarvis struck early, trapping Taufeeq Umar with a fullish ball that straightened towards middle and leg to leave Pakistan 8 for 1.
That should have become 16 for 2 in the next over when Vitori squared Hafeez up with a delivery that left him, but Brendan Taylor spilt the edge at second slip. It was a smart set-up from Vitori, after Hafeez had punched the two previous balls, both inswingers, down the ground.
The reprieve did not affect Hafeez’s mindset and he continued to seek boundaries every time the bowlers missed their lengths. Despite his intent, Zimbabwe retained three slips and bowled full. He responded with a series of pleasing drives through the off side, and pulled well when the odd ball was dropped short. Azhar Ali was mostly a spectator as the 50-run stand came up in the 11th over. Ray Price’s introduction slowed down the pace, as he offered generous flight in search of the edge, but Hafeez latched onto Vitori’s short balls to motor past his half-century. Late in the day, he whacked Greg Lamb for six over midwicket, before taking Price for two boundaries in the last over to cap Pakistan’s strong comeback.
That Pakistan managed their resurgence was down to Cheema’s intent in the lead-up to tea. He concentrated on bowling a a full length to skittle out the tail, but not before Mawoyo had accumulated relentlessly, interspersing phases of stonewalling with sparks of fluency.
Mawoyo began the day with two early boundaries off Sohail Khan to enter the 90s, but he slowed down thereafter as his tormentor-in-chief, Saeed Ajmal, came into the attack. Mawoyo faced 166 balls in all from Ajmal, without once looking like he could spot the doosra. Ajmal’s offbreaks did not turn too sharply, but mixed up with the odd indecipherable doosra, the stock delivery too became a threat.
On 98, Mawoyo wandered out of the crease in an attempt to reach the flight, but the doosra turned past the outside edge into Adnan Akmal’s gloves. Akmal closed the gloves a touch late and inexplicably, failed to break the stumps with the ball lodged between his wrists.
That wasn’t Mawoyo’s only moment of indecision in the 90s. He was also troubled by Junaid Khan outside off stump repeatedly. Junaid’s persistence accounted for Craig Ervine, who fended a short ball back to Junaid for his first Test wicket. Mawoyo hung on, and after 13 agonising balls on 99, inside-edged towards midwicket to reach his 100. With the milestone out of the way, he showed more freedom, driving and pulling Ajmal for fours before lacing Cheema down the ground.
Azhar’s part-time legbreaks did not bother Mawoyo after lunch, and he picked up easy boundaries off him to kick off the most fluent session of his innings. Lamb too was at ease, thumping an Azhar half-tracker through point as Zimbabwe passed 350. Ajmal kept searching, but his doosras did everything except go to hand after taking the edge. Lamb misread his first ball after drinks, nicking one past slip for four, but Ajmal trapped him two balls later with the offbreak. Lamb had made 39, one of four top-order batsmen to fall within sight of a half-century.
Cheema’s perseverance with the inswinger finally bore fruit when Price inside-edged to short leg, giving the bowler his first Test victim four days short of his 32nd birthday. Mawoyo remained immovable at his end, his footwork and defence increasing in decisiveness through the day. He brought up his 150 by nudging his 422nd ball to square leg. Ajmal should have had Vitori next ball, but Junaid put in a lame effort and failed to reach the top-edge as it swirled towards him at deep square leg.
Armed with a roughed-up ball against the tail-enders, Cheema resorted to a full length for the first time in the innings. He eventually got Vitori edging low to slip, before bowling Jarvis and Chris Mpofu. But that was not before Mpofu had mowed Ajmal over midwicket to take Zimbabwe past 400, a creditable effort considering that barring Tatenda Taibu, none of their batsmen could read the offspinner.
Source: Cricinfo
