Debutant fast bowler Saqib Khan took seven wickets on Thursday as Sri Lanka were dismissed for 446 on the fourth day of the first Test at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. The effort gave the visitors a narrow 12-run first-innings lead.
Sri Lanka resumed the day on 404 for four, only 30 runs short of Pakistan’s first-innings total of 434 for nine declared. Saqib finished with figures of 7-130 as the final six wickets fell for just 42 runs.
Early breakthroughs spark a Sri Lankan collapse
Saqib removed both overnight centurions early in the day’s play, which set off the collapse. Dhananjaya de Silva was out for 167, caught behind by wicketkeeper Muhammad Ghazi Ghori.
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Captain Kusal Mendis added only two runs to his overnight 117 before falling to the same combination. He finished on 119 off 202 balls.
Saqib then worked through the tail, dismissing Sonal Dinusha for 20, Lahiru Kumara for a duck and Asitha Fernando for four to complete his haul. Mohammad Abbas took two wickets, while Razaullah claimed one.
Saqib joins Pakistan’s debut record list
Saqib became the fourth Pakistan bowler to take seven wickets in an innings on his Test debut. He joined Mohammad Nazir Jr, Mohammad Zahid and Abrar Ahmed on that list.
He is also the second Pakistan fast bowler to achieve the feat. He matched Zahid’s seven for 66 against New Zealand in 1996, while Nazir had taken seven for 99 against New Zealand in 1969 and Abrar returned 7-114 against England in 2022.
Pakistan’s first innings was built around Saud Shakeel’s top score of 93, with Tayyab Arif and Arafat Minhas contributing 57 and 52.
Hosts aim to build a lead in second innings
Pakistan will now look to build a substantial lead when they resume their second innings.
