Pakistan set up for history-making chase

Scorecard: Sri Lanka v Pakistan

Pakistan have put themselves in a strong position to make history on day five of the deciding Test against Sri Lanka in Pallekele.

With the three-match series locked at one-all, the tourists were set 377 to win in the final innings after Sri Lanka captain Angel Mathews added to his superb second innings record with a superb 122 that steered his side to 313.

Mathews now boasts a batting average second only to Sir Donald Bradman in his team’s second innings; in 37 trips to the crease, he is averaging 66.13 with 1,455 runs and three hundreds.

In reply, Pakistan were in serious early trouble at 2-13 until Younis Khan (101no) and Shan Masood (114no) combined for a so-far unbroken stand of 217, leaving them requiring 147 to win in what is set to be a fascinating final day.

Quick Single: Younis ton keeps Pakistan in the hunt

It was Younis’s 30th hundred in his 101st match, and incredibly he became the first player in Test history to record five centuries in the fourth innings of a Test.

More history will be made if Pakistan can reach the daunting target.

In 138 years of Test cricket, only five teams have achieved a higher score to win in the fourth innings of a Test, while the highest successful run chase in Sri Lanka is 352, made by the home side against South Africa in 2006.

In Sharjah last year, Pakistan chased 302 to win against the Sri Lankans – the second-highest successful run chase in their history after the 314 they made to beat Australia in Karachi in 1994.

Of the three previous Tests to have been played at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, rain has played a significant role in three drawn outcomes.

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