Shakeel and Ghori push Pakistan past 300 in Rawalpindi after bad light cut day one short

Pakistan pushed past 300 on the second morning in Rawalpindi, with Saud Shakeel and Ghazi Ghori unseparated since the fifth wicket fell on the opening day

Pakistan reached 339 for 5 from 83.3 overs on the second day of the first Test against Sri Lanka at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, extending an innings that had closed on 281 for 5 when bad light ended day one early.

Saud Shakeel, who resumed unbeaten on 57, and Ghazi Ghori, 7 not out overnight, have carried their unbroken sixth-wicket partnership to 86.

Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis won the toss and bowled first, a decision that brought five wickets on the opening day and none so far on the second.

Bad light ends a shortened first day

Only 67.2 overs were possible on Monday, with the umpires taking the players off around 15 minutes early as the light faded.

That left Pakistan on 281 for 5, a position built on four half-centuries and lost wickets at regular intervals rather than in clusters.

The second morning has been slower in tempo, Shakeel and Ghori adding their runs without a scoring burst and without offering Sri Lanka a chance to break through.

Four fifties but no hundred

Pakistan's openers put on 86 before Azan Awais edged Milan Rathnayake to Mendis for 30 in the 16th over.

Tayyab Arif, playing his first Test, made 57 from 51 balls with nine fours and a six before falling to Asitha Fernando with the score on 90.

Babar Azam reached 50 from 58 balls with seven fours, then edged a drive off Dilshan Madushanka to Mendis, the third wicket going down at 159.

Mohammad Taha, another debutant, batted through the middle of the day for 51 from 105 balls before skying Sonal Dinusha to Dhananjaya de Silva at 227, and Salman Ali Agha made 16 before Fernando had him caught behind at 253.

Taha settles alongside his captain

Taha said the early part of his innings was the hardest. "Naturally, there were some early nerves given that it was my debut match," he said.

He credited his captain for steadying him, saying that batting alongside Babar proved immensely reassuring and that the guidance he received at the crease helped him settle.

He was also candid about the manner of his dismissal, saying he was disappointed because "I was set and could have taken my innings further".

Sri Lanka's seamers left wanting

Fernando was the pick of the attack on day one with 2-64, while Rathnayake returned 1-43 from 16 overs across three spells.

Madushanka went for 1-87 from his 16 overs and Lahiru Kumara was wicketless from 16 at a cost of 70, with Dinusha's 1-10 from three overs the most economical return of the innings.

Sri Lanka bowling coach Ryan van Niekerk was unimpressed by the first-day return. "Probably not satisfied as bowling first and with the seamers we have we should have taken a couple of more wickets," he said, adding that the ball came on to the bat beautifully.

A first-innings mark in mind

Taha has already named the target Pakistan are batting towards, saying a first-innings score of more than 400 would be a good total, and noting that the pitch has not been an easy one for newcomers.

Pakistan handed out four Test caps for this match, to Tayyab Arif, Mohammad Taha, Arafat Minhas and Saqib Khan, and three of the four lower-order batters are still to come.

The match is part of the World Test Championship cycle, and the series concludes with the second Test in Lahore from 17 to 21 November.

Scorecard: Pakistan 339 for 5 in 83.3 overs (Tayyab Arif 57, Mohammad Taha 51, Babar Azam 50, Saud Shakeel and Ghazi Ghori unbeaten; Asitha Fernando 2-64) against Sri Lanka on day two of the first Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.