2nd Test: Toiling Jayawardene posts ton for SL

Veteran batsman helps tourists gain 153-run lead against Pakistan on day two.

DUBAI:

Mahela Jayawardene defied a left-hand webbing injury to notch a century while Kaushal Silva missed his by five runs as Sri Lanka gained the upper hand over Pakistan in the second Test in Dubai on Thursday.

Jayawardene, who received three stitches after he dropped a catch on Wednesday, scored 106 not out and shared an invaluable 139-run partnership with Silva (95) to guide Sri Lanka to 318 for four at stumps on the second day.

Sri Lanka have gained an important 153-run lead over Pakistan’s first-innings score of 165, and a chance to take a lead in the three-Test series after the first match ended in a draw in Abu Dhabi last week.

Jayawardene, grimacing while playing strokes, toiled his way to a remarkable knock, hit paceman Bilawal Bhatti for his 12th boundary to reach the three-figure mark for 215 balls, raising his bat in delight before he was embraced by captain Angelo Mathews.

‘Tried hard to ignore injury’

Jayawardene said he concentrated hard to forget the injury.

“Obviously there were limitations in my batting but I concentrated hard and the target was to time the shots and it’s pleasing to score a hundred,” said Jayawardene, who received injections and pain-killers before the innings.

Jayawardene-Silva ensured Sri Lanka overcame a disappointing start to the day after they lost Kumar Sangakkara (26) and Dinesh Chandimal (12) in the space of 13 runs.

Silva was finally dismissed leg-before by Mohammad Hafeez soon after tea. He hit ten boundaries during his defiant stay at the crease.

Jayawardene successfully overturned a leg-before decision against him by Australian umpire Bruce Oxenford when on 26.

Pakistan took the second new ball in the 81st over and could have been rewarded in the next over had wicket-keeper Sarfraz Ahmed not spilled a simple chance from Mathews off Rahat Ali when the batsman had just six.

Resuming at 57 for one, Sri Lanka had hoped experienced batsman Sangakkara would score more but the left-hander fell in the sixth over of the day.

Left-arm paceman Rahat trapped Sangakkara leg before Junaid, who had innings best figures of two for 75, then had Chandimal caught at deep fine-leg off an uppish hook shot.

Pakistan’s bowling woes were highlighted by Ajmal’s failure for a second successive innings. He went wicketless in 49 second-innings overs of the first Test and once again failed to make an impact in his 27 overs.

Pakistan’s bowling coach Mohammad Akram said they tried everything but could not get Jayawardene out.

“The pitch was different from the first day and our bowlers tried everything but we couldn’t get Mahela who played a very good knock,” said Akram.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 10^th, 2014.

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