PAK V ENG
Stumps report: An unbeaten 55-run partnership between Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow has given England hope after losing two early wickets and captain Alastair Cook on day two of the second Test against Pakistan in Dubai. The umpires brought the day to an early close due to bad light, with England on 182-3, Root unscathed on 76 runs and Bairstow unbeaten on 27.
It was a perfect start to the day for England as Stuart Broad, Mark Wood, Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali, who nabbed his 50th Test wicket, dismissed their opponents for 378 in the morning session. After lunch, Pakistan regained control by claiming the wickets of Ali (1) and Ian Bell, who was taken out for four less than three overs after his teammate was sent back to the pavilion. Cook and Root managed to steady the innings by reaching tea on an unbeaten 91-run partnership, recovering from 14-2 to end the afternoon session on 105-2.
The captain, who was criticised earlier this year for a poor run of form, brought up his 45th Test fifty, pushing him to second on the all-time runs list for openers on 9064. Cook continued to thrive by hitting two consecutive boundaries off Imran Khan, but after scoring 65 runs, the England skipper was caught out by Ahmed Shehzad after knocking straight to leg slip off Yasir Shah's delivery. Root and Cook's partnership ended on 113 runs, but the Yorkshireman took over by storming to a 15th Test fifty by sending the ball past short leg for one run off Shah. Root and Bairstow will return to the crease tomorrow morning in an attempt to cut down Pakistan's 196-run lead.
Tea report: An unbeaten 91-run partnership between Alastair Cook and Joe Root has guided England to 105-2 at tea on the second day of the second Test match against Pakistan. After bowling Pakistan all out for 378 during the morning session, England had been hoping to put on a sizeable opening stand at the start of their reply, but it took just 10 deliveries for Pakistan to make a breakthrough. Moeen Ali fell off the bowling of Wahab Riaz for just one, before less than three overs later, Ian Bell departed for four runs after edging an Imran Khan delivery through to Sarfraz Ahmed.
That brought Root to the crease to help Cook, and the pair combined to hit 12 boundaries during a 24-over stand that helped reduced the margin between the two sides to 273 runs. Cook will return for the final session of the day on 46, while Root has reached 45 off just 63 deliveries.
Lunch report: England have fought back against Pakistan to claim six wickets and end their opponents' innings during the morning session on day two of the second Test in Dubai. Stuart Broad, Adil Rashid and Mark Wood snatched wickets, while Moeen Ali took his 50th Test wicket with a double haul to leave Pakistan all out for 378.
At the start of play, Pakistan were in command thanks to a 104-run partnership between Misbah-ul-Haq and Asad Shafiq, but England had a bright start when Broad dismantled Misbah in the first over. The batsman, who hit 102 runs off 197 balls, was given out lbw when Broad's delivery hit the knee, and it was a perfect start for the bowler as he kicked off the day with a wicket maiden. Pakistan were able to recover as Shafiq pulled up his 50 with a four through the slips off Wood, and James Anderson was issued with two warnings for running on the pitch, meaning that a third would prevent him from bowling again in the innings.
After a spell of Pakistan dominance, Sarfraz Ahmed (32) was caught out by Anderson after sending a high ball to mid-on off the bowling of Ali, who claimed a second wicket of the day two overs later. Wahab Riaz (6) went for a six, but Anderson was at mid-on once again to catch, giving England the momentum for the first time in the Test. Pakistan began to toil as Rashid forced Yasir Shah to edge to Ben Stokes at slip, and the batsman returned to the pavilion taking 16 runs off 17 deliveries. Wood called an end to Pakistan's time at the crease when Shafiq was sent packing on 83 after sending the ball straight to midwicket, where Joe Root was placed to catch. England will open their innings with the bat after lunch.
SL V WI
Sri Lanka 76 for 2 and 200 lead West Indies 163 by 113 runs
Dhammika Prasad bounded in, making the early incisions, allrounder Milinda Siriwardana struck either side of lunch, and offspinner Dilruwan Perera took care of the tail, as West Indies were bowled out for 163, giving Sri Lanka a 37-run lead by tea on the second day, at the P Sara Oval. The lead was built further by Kusal Mendis and Kaushal Silva, who added 54 together, the highest partnership of the Test so far.
Mendis may have looked jittery in the first innings but he got going in the second dig with some wristy flicks. He began with three fours and sussed out the conditions better after Dimuth Karunaratne was dismissed first ball when he tamely chipped Jerome Taylor to square leg.
The other opener - Kaushal Silva - also had jitters. He was given out lbw on 3 before a review rescued him, with the tracker confirming that the ball was sliding down leg.
Mendis' promising innings was cut short at 39 by Jomel Warrican, but Dinesh Chandimal, having survived a tighter lbw review on 4, and Silva saw their team through to stumps while pushing the lead past 100.
Kraigg Braithwaite had earlier mounted some fight for West Indies with 47 off 101 balls, and it was extended through a 32-run seventh-wicket partnership between Denesh Ramdin and Jason Holder. Rangana Herath continued to be a wicket-taking threat, but had success only in his 17th over when Ramdin missed an agricultural swipe. Not that Sri Lanka complained.
Prasad, who led the attack, explored shorter lengths to begin with, but soon settled into his groove and returned figures of 5-2-8-2 in an energetic first spell. Nuwan Pradeep exploited the uneven bounce well enough to complement Prasad. Devendra Bishoo, the nightwatchman, was the first to fall on the second day when he threw his bat outside off, nicking Prasad behind, for 14.
Prasad then welcomed Darren Bravo with one that misbehaved, snaking away wide outside off and beat the outside edge with a full tempter. Prasad got the big eyes and the big smile going. What followed was a sequence of 19 dots with Sri Lanka burrowing into the middle order. A few balls spat from a length while others kept low, asking more questions of the batsmen.
The pressure on Bravo eventually told, with the batsman offering an indecisive angled bat and chopping Prasad on for 2. Herath added to West Indies' worries by employing teasing flight and ripped one viciously past the outside edge of Brathwaite. Prasad then got to bowl to Brathwaite for the first time on the second morning, 45 minutes after a delayed start due to a damp outfield caused by overnight rain, and had the opener scoop the first ball just wide of short cover.
Brathwaite had endured more dicey moments, but his innings ended when he was given out caught behind by umpire Rod Tucker. The noise may have come from the bat jamming the ground but there was not enough evidence to overturn the on-field decision. Marlon Samuel's innings was far more painstaking - he survived two leg-before appeals on zero within his first five balls, and was left scoreless for another ten balls. He weathered two more leg-before appeals and was caught at slip, lazily pushing at a tossed-up ball from Siriwardana to leave his side at 76 for 4, eight balls before lunch.
If it was any consolation, though, Samuels avoided his ninth single-digit score against Sri Lanka in 16 innings, nudging his average to double-figures.
Jermaine Blackwood flickered briefly - he drilled Pradeep through mid-off after a slow start and launched Siriwardana for a straight six - before Prasad returned and struck with the first ball after lunch. Holder also showed intent when he jumped out of the crease and sent Dilruwan clattering towards the media box.
However, Ramdin and Holder exited in a space of 19 balls and the tail did not wag, as the hosts gained what appeared to be a substantial lead on a pitch that already had puffs of dust exploding from the surface. This was only the first time since 2006 that Sri Lanka had managed a first-innings lead after making 200 or fewer when batting first.
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