1st Test ends in draw after SL lose 5 wkts

KARACHI: Sri Lanka lost half of their side in their second innings before the first Test ended in a draw here on Wednesday.

When Sri Lanka reached 144-5, both captains decided to end the game realising no result possible in the remaining 12 overs. 

However, Pakistan has emerged with the upper hand in this drawn game which has seen plenty of runs made, a handful of landmarks reached and a number of records broken, and in the end Pakistan bowlers to make things interesting. 

When Sri Lanka batted for the second time after toiling in the field for about three days, Pakistan paceman Umar Gul struck early blows, removing opener Malinda Warnapura (2), caught behind in the first over, then had Tillakaratne Dilshan (8) caught to leave the tourists struggling at 45-3.

Tharanga Paranavitana, who fell for a duck in the first innings, failed to beat a direct throw on to his stumps while taking a quick single and was run out for nine, ending a miserable Test debut.

Kumar Sangakkara was the only batsman to play with responsibility to take his team to safety. He batted for 113 minutes for 65 runs with ten fours.

Leg-spinner Danish Kaneria and pacer Umar Gul took two wickets each for 35 and 41 runs, respectively.