Aamer sparkles on Pakistan debut

Pakistan's 17-year-old Test debutant Mohammad Aamer sends back the dangerous Tillakaratne Dilshan for 28

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Pakistan’s fast bowlers Mohammad Aamer and Abdur Rauf sparkled on debut, but it was Sri Lanka who walked off in the ascendancy on day one of the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle.

Aamer struck two early blows in the morning to reduce the home side to 21 for two and picked up a third wicket in the first over after tea, while Rauf claimed a brace as Sri Lanka were eventually bowled out for 292 at the Galle International Stadium.

Seven overs remained in the day and the home side hit back, with Nuwan Kulasekara bowling Salman Butt for a first-ball duck and Thilan Thushara trapping Khurram Manzoor in front for just two. Pakistan reached 15 for two at stumps.

While Sri Lanka lost wickets regularly through the day, they still scored freely enough in overcast and testing conditions.

Opener Tharanga Paranavitana had anchored the top order en route to 72 and his maiden half-century, while debutant Angelo Mathews, batting at number seven, scored 42, adding a touch of respectability to Sri Lanka’s score.

The day, however, belonged to Pakistan’s inexperienced pace attack led by Aamer and Rauf.

As he did on debut in the ICC World Twenty20 in England, 17-year-old Aamer struck in his first over sending back opener Malinda Warnapura cheaply.

Aamer had shared the new ball with Gul and had troubled the left-hand batsman with pace and movement.

Warnapura had gotten off the mark with a miscued lofted drive which fell just wide of mid-on, but failed keep a wickedly swerving delivery from crashing into his off stump.

Aamer then claimed the prize scalp of Kumar Sangakkara, inducing a thickish edge and having the Sri Lanka captain caught by Shoaib Malik at third slip.

The damage in that first session could have been worse for Sri Lanka, had Pakistan’s fielding been a little sharper.

Paranavitana was dropped on four by Malik, while wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal put down a sitter offered by Mahela Jaywardene while the former skipper was yet to score.

Instead, Sri Lanka recovered through a 75-run stand between the pair, both growing in confidence as Sri Lanka edged to the 100-run mark.

But Pakistan struck back through Rauf who claimed Jayawardene as his first Test victim.

Jayawardene had contributed 30 runs to the partnership when he leaned forward to defend a delivery from Rauf, only for the outside edge to fly straight to Akmal. The wicketkeeper made no mistake this time.

A maiden Test fifty for Sri Lanka's young opener, Tharanga Paranavitana, came amid a flurry of wickets at the other end

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Sri Lanka spent the first hour after lunch reviving their innings, but struggled to gain any significant momentum.

Thilan Samaraweera had plodded and pushed in his usual fashion for his 31 runs before uncharacteristically falling to the guiles of part-time bowler Younus Khan.

Pakistan’s captain had surprisingly brought himself on and had delivered two probing overs in the morning session.

The game seemed to be meandering in the middle session when Younus brought himself back on and struck immediately by dismissing Samaraweera caught behind.

Paranavitanna had already departed a short earlier, handing Rauf his second wicket by chasing a short and wide delivery, snaffled by Misbah-ul Haq.

Those wickets brought Tillakaratne Dilshan and Angelo Mathews – Sri Lanka’s last recognized batting pair - to the crease and for the first time Sri Lanka looked in the ascendancy.

Dilshan began in customary aggressive fashion and had looked good during his 28 until a fondness for boundaries proved his undoing.

Aamer fed him a juicy delivery wide of off-stump and the batsman went down on a knee, but sliced it straight to Malik at gully.

Dilshan departed in the first over after the tea interval, but Mathews forged on, before becoming Gul’s first victim.

A tidy innings from Kulasekara and his small, but time-consuming stand for the eighth wicket with Rangana Herath frustrated the visitors further and edged Sri Lanka closer to the 300-run mark.

Younus’ mixed bag of medium-pace eventually claimed Kulasekara (38), leaving Herath not out on 20 when Sri Lanka’s innings ended with the dismissal of number 11 batsman Ajantha Mendis.