Pakistan Keen To Wrap Series With 2nd Win Over SL

Sharjah, Nov 2: Pakistan is keen to score a victory against Sri Lanka in the third and final cricket test starting on Thursday and leapfrog its opponents in the test rankings.

Pakistan, forced to play the home series in the United Arab Emirates due to lingering security issues in its own country, can jump above Sri Lanka into fifth spot with a victory in the series finale.

Sri Lanka, winless in 13 tests dating to July 2010, would slip to sixth should it lose in Sharjah.

Pakistan, which leads the series 1-0, dominated the first two tests, failing to force a win in Abu Dhabi but clinically seeing off the Sri Lankans in four days in Dubai.

Pakistan skipper Misbah-ul-Haq said there were no thoughts of playing defensively.

"We'll go for the win. We'll try to win," he said. "We'll try to play positive cricket, good cricket and try to win the test match."

Pakistan is expected to field the same team which won by nine wickets in Dubai.

Misbah was pleased with all aspects of the team's performance in the second test, singling out the four-man attack for praise.

Offspinner Saeed Ajmal claimed the man of the match but left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman and pace pair Umar Gul and Junaid Khan were also magnificent in support.

"They are match-winners," Misbah said. "We are not trusting of one bowler. We are playing as a team, we are relying on everybody and I think that's the key to perform."

Pakistan will need to avoid being distracted by Tuesday's guilty verdicts against former captain Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif for spot-fixing incidents that blighted the tour of England in the summer of 2010.

Since that scandal, under Misbah's leadership, the team has blossomed and is yet to lose a series, winning four tests, drawing four and losing just one.

Misbah is one of three players in the Pakistan team, alongside fellow batsmen Taufeeq Umar and Younus Khan, who have played tests previously at the venue. Sharjah has hosted a world record 200 one-day internationals but only four tests, all back in 2002.

Pakistan defeated West Indies in the first two tests, in January-February, but then suffered innings defeats against then-No. 1 Australia in both tests later that year, including a humiliating two-day defeat after being bowled out for 59 and 53.

Sri Lanka's batting in the current series has been a concern, and captain Tillakaratne Dilshan said the key to his side's improvement lies with its batsmen.

"I am worried about our batting. We have to come strong next match in this area," he said.
   Former skipper Kumar Sangakkara has been a standout in the series, but fellow veterans Dilshan and Mahela Jayawardene are yet to register a half century.

Sri Lanka has been bowled out for 197, 483, 239 and 257, its only substantial total coming on the back of a Sangakkara double century.

Dilshan may be tempted to move up the order to the opening position where his attacking game has flourished in the past.

The Sri Lankans are expected to bring in offspinner Suraj Randiv to replace one of the three seamers, with Suranga Lakmal the most likely to miss out.

Squads

Pakistan: Misbah-ul-Haq (captain), Mohammad Hafeez, Taufeeq Umar, Azhar Ali, Younus Khan, Asad Shafiq, Adnan Akmal, Abdur Rehman, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Junaid Khan, Aizaz Cheema, Shoaib Malik, Imran Farhat, Wahab Riaz.

Sri Lanka: Tillakaratne Dilshan (captain), Tharanga Paranavitana, Lahiru Thirimanne, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Angelo Mathews, Kaushal Silva, Rangana Herath, Suraj Randiv, Chanaka Welegedara, Dhammika Prasad, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Dinesh Chandimal, Kosala Kualasekara.