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Younis Khan leads Pakistan's fightback

Younis Khan hit a gritty century on his Test debut to lead Pakistan's fightback on the fourth day of the first cricket Test against Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi on Tuesday.

Pakistan's second innings was finally wrapped up at 390, giving Sri Lanka a victory target of 220.

At stumps the visitors were 11 without loss, 209 runs away from victory.

Khan, who made 107, was involved in a match-saving ninth wicket record stand of 145 with injured all-rounder Wasim Akram. Akram made an enterprising 79, batting with a runner due to a groin injury.

Khan, a 22-year-old from Karachi, played adventurously from the outset and benefited from two chances and two leg before shouts during his 322-minute stay, hitting 12 boundaries. He was finally out for 107 when his drive was deflected off silly point to Aravinda de Silva off Muttiah Muralitharan.

At 236-8, with defeat staring Pakistan in the face, the young Khan found a pugnacious companion in Akram who tried to hit the team out of trouble with a fortune-turning stand and took the match into the last day.

Khan became the seventh Pakistani and 66th batsman in Test cricket to hit a ton in his first Test when he took a couple off Pramdya Wickremasinghe to wide mid-off. He took 294 minutes, faced 224 balls and carted 11 boundaries to pass the century mark.

"I wanted to help my team avoid the defeat and make the day memorable for me and my country. I am happy I have done that," Younis Khan said.

"It will be a long day tomorrow and we will do our best but our bad luck is that we will miss Akram and Saqlain Mushtaq in our attack," coach Intikhab Alam said.

Alam said off spinner Mushtaq was suffering from dehydration and star pacer Akram had a groin injury.

Akram, whose contribution in the match had been a mere 13 deliveries on day one before walking off with an injury, hit 10 boundaries during his 195-minute innings lasting 146 balls.

Sri Lankan bowlers bowled short and will rue the fielding lapses that allowed the home team to turn their position around.

Akram was dismissed with nine overs to go when he was caught at silly point by Mahela Jayawardene off Muralitharan.

Khalid Ibadullah, Javed Miandad, Salim Malik, Mohammad Wasim, Ali Naqvi and Azhar Mahmood had previously scored hundreds on debuts for Pakistan.

Both Naqvi and Mahmood achieved the record on this same ground in the same Test against South Africa three years ago.

Younis completed his maiden half-century in 129 minutes with a hooked boundary off Chaminda Vaas. He was let off at 42 by de Silva in the first slip off Vaas and by Jayawardene at silly point off Muralitharan when 56. But that did not deter Khan from playing daring hook shots, lofted drives and cuts square of the wicket.

Akram reached his sixth Test 50 off 72 balls, spiced with six boundaries. They brought up 100 partnership in 130 minutes off 194 balls.

Pakistan's previous best stand for the ninth wicket against Sri Lanka was 127 put on by Haroon Rasheed and Rashid Khan in the Karachi Test.

Resuming at 154-4, Pakistan lost nightwatchman Waqar Younis while still two runs short of avoiding an innings defeat. Vaas took a fine low return catch on his own bowling to dismiss Waqar Younis for 8. Vaas struck again with the second new ball when he trapped Moin Khan leg before wicket for 10.

Pakistan were 53 ahead when they lost their seventh wicket. The stand by Moin Khan and Younis Khan for the seventh wicket yielded 35 runs.

Pakistan were 230-7 at lunch.

Nuwan Zoysa had all-rounder Abdur Razzak caught behind for 3, further tightening the visitors' grip on the match.

Pakistan were 327-8 at tea, just 156 ahead.

Younis Khan came into the reckoning after making more than 1,100 runs in the past domestic season with two double hundreds. He made his international debut in the Karachi one-dayer against Sri Lanka two weeks ago, hitting an impressive 46. Pakistan made 182 in their first innings. The visitors made 353 in their first outing, taking a lead of 171 runs.