Wahab's run-up woes leave Pakistan puzzled

Fiery Pakistan paceman Wahab Riaz suffered an extraordinary case of the run-up yips on day two of second Test against Sri Lanka in Dubai.

In his 19th over during Sri Lanka's first innings, Wahab pulled out of his run-up five times in a row as he suddenly lost all rhythm, leaving coach Mickey Arthur visibly exasperated.

The left-armer had begun the over with the economical figures of 0-38 in a disciplined effort across the first two days of the Test.

But Wahab took close to five minutes to bowl the fifth ball of the 111th over of the innings, finally managing to reach the crease on his sixth attempt when he banged in a short ball to Sri Lanka opener Dimuth Karunaratne.

Arthur had put his head in his hands as Wahab struggled and captain Sarfraz Ahmed looked increasingly concerned for his passionate quick.

The 32-year-old nonetheless pushed on after the puzzling incident, later removing Karunaratne for 196 as the left-hander eyed a maiden Test double-century.

To add to Pakistan's woes, spearhead Mohammad Amir walked off the field after a recurring shin injury sustained late on day two. He managed to bowl just three overs in the day.

Karunaratne meanwhile completed 3,000 Test runs during his marathon knock, becoming the 12th Sri Lankan to reach the milestone when, on 141, he smashed a boundary off Amir.

The opener batted for nine hours and seven minutes, facing 405 balls off which he cracked 19 boundaries and a six.