Pakistan 137-2 at lunch as four debutants start Rawalpindi Test
Tayyab Arif made 57 on debut after Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis won the toss and chose to bowl on a pitch he read as suited to fast bowling.
Pakistan reached 137 for 2 at lunch on the opening day of the first Test against Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi, with opener Tayyab Arif making 57 on debut after the visitors chose to bowl.
Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis won the toss and put Pakistan in, saying the pitch looked favourable to fast bowling. Sri Lanka did not pick a specialist spinner, Express News reported.
Azan Awais, the other opener, made 30 and was the first to go, caught behind by Kusal Mendis off Milan Rathnayake with the total on 86. Tayyab followed four runs later, also caught by the wicketkeeper, off Asitha Fernando.
Babar Azam was 31 not out at the break and Mohammad Taha, another debutant, was 15 not out.
Pakistan gave four players their first Test caps: Tayyab Arif, Mohammad Taha, all-rounder Arafat Minhas and fast bowler Saqib Khan. Babar had confirmed before play that at least four players would debut, and said his side needed to be careful in the first session.
Speaking at Rawalpindi Stadium, Babar said the team's target was now the next World Test Championship. A different and improved team would be seen in Pindi, he said, according to Aaj News, and Pakistan would try to build a good combination of senior and junior players.
He said young players were being given confidence, that selection was the responsibility of the coaches and selectors, and that he tried to do his own job well. Asked about Mohammad Yousuf, Babar said he had not contacted the former Test batsman directly but had reached out through social media, and would seek his guidance if Yousuf got in touch.
Rawalpindi police made security and traffic arrangements for the match on the instructions of City Police Officer Hassan Mushtaq Sukhera, Express News reported.
Express News listed the Pakistan XI as Babar Azam (captain), Azan Awais, Mohammad Tayyab Arif, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Taha, Salman Ali Agha, Ghazi Ghori, Razaullah, Arafat Minhas, Mohammad Abbas and Saqib Khan. It listed Sri Lanka as Kusal Mendis (captain and wicketkeeper), Lahiru Udara, Pasindu Sooriyabandara, Dinesh Chandimal, Kamindu Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva, Sonal Dinusha, Milan Rathnayake, Lahiru Kumara, Asitha Fernando and Dilshan Madushanka.
How the reports differ
Express News led with the toss and the lunch score and alone listed both teams, named the four debutants in its match copy and reported the Rawalpindi police security and traffic arrangements. Aaj News led instead with Babar Azam's pre-match press conference and carried more of what he said, including his answer on Mohammad Yousuf and his remark that the target is the next World Test Championship. Both reports agree on the toss, the decision to bowl and the 137 for 2 score at lunch.
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