Pakistan whittle down Sri Lanka's lead

Sri Lanka sensed a challenge to their domination of the second cricket Test after Pakistan continued to fight hard on the second day today.

Sri Lanka sensed a challenge to their domination of the second cricket Test after Pakistan continued to fight hard on the second day today.

Pakistan, shot out for 90 in the first innings, hit back to dismiss Sri Lanka for 240 and then went to tea at 61 for no loss in their second knock at the P. Sara Oval.

Openers Khurram Manzoor (29 not out) and Fawad Alam (30 not out) saw off the new ball attack to reduce Sri Lanka's lead to 89 runs on a wicket that afforded no help to the seamers unlike the first day.

Seamer Umar Gul and off-spinner Saeed Ajmal grabbed four wickets each as Sri Lanka lost their last seven wickets for 63 runs after starting the second day at a comfortable 164-3.

Gul extracted reverse swing with the old ball on the dry wicket to rip through the innings, including the wickets of Nuwan Kulasekera and Rangana Herath off successive deliveries.

Thilan Thushara denied Gul a hat-trick and Angelo Mathews hit a defiant 27 towards the end to boost Sri Lanka's total from 220-8 before the innings ended 20 minutes after lunch.

The hosts lost the overnight pair of skipper Kumar Sangakkara and Thilan Samaraweera within the first hour for the addition of 24 runs.

Samaraweera, who made 21 in a fourth-wicket stand of 44 with his captain, was run out by a direct throw from Mohammad Aamer at mid-off while trying to attempt a cheeky single.

Sangakkara plodded from his overnight score of 81 to 87 but was denied a 19th Test century when Gul pegged back his off-stump with a reverse-swinging delivery that came in sharply.

Ajmal, who had claimed two wickets on Sunday, earned another crucial break when umpire Daryl Harper ruled Tillakaratne Dilshan caught at the wicket by Kamran Akmal for 20 to make Sri Lanka 203-6.

The hosts tripped to 220-8 soon after, when Gul had Kulasekera edging a wild heave to Misbah-ul-Haq at first slip before taking a return catch off Herath with the next delivery.

Thushara was leg-before to Abdur Rauf in the first over after lunch before Ajmal terminated the innings by having Mathews caught in the covers by Mohammad Yousuf.

Sri Lanka lead the three-match series 1-0 after winning the first Test in Galle by 50 runs last week.

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