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Sri Lanka openers hold firm

Skipper Sanath Jayasuriya combined patience with aggression to help Sri Lanka to a healthy score on the opening day of the third cricket Test against Pakistan at Kandy on Wednesday.

Heavy overnight rain delayed the start of play till after lunch, but by close, the home side piled 140 without any loss, with Jayasuriya scoring 82 of those runs and Marvan Atapattu 50.

Playing his 50th Test, Jayasuriya, who won his third consecutive toss of the series and elected to bat, became the third Sri Lanka player to score more than 3,000 Test runs when he made 19.

Though he was dropped on 50 by wicketkeeper Moin Khan, he played judiciously, hitting nine fours and a six, and combined well with Atapattu before bad light halted play.

Aravinda de Silva (5,685 runs) and Arjuna Ranatunga (4,902 runs) are the only other Sri Lankans who have scored more Test runs.

Atapattu, who scored his third half century of the series, too had a life, when he was dropped by Inzamam-ul-Haq in the slips on 37. However, he did well to overcome a torrid time from the Pakistan bowlers during which he was forced to change his damaged helmet after being struck twice by bouncers.

Wasim Akram was Pakistan's most economical bowler, giving away just 12 runs runs from ten overs, four of which were maidens.

Agencies