Rawalpindi, Oct 20 (IANS) Shan Masood’s fluent 87 and Abdullah Shafique’s composed 57 guided Pakistan to 259 for 5 on the opening day of the second Test against South Africa in Rawalpindi after the hosts opted to bat first on a slow and lifeless surface.

The pair shared a solid 111-run stand for the second wicket to put Pakistan in control, while South Africa’s bowlers, led by Keshav Maharaj, toiled hard but were let down by poor fielding.

The track in Pindi offered little for the bowlers, with no significant spin early on and only occasional low bounce. Pakistan’s approach was measured, with the run rate staying below three-an-over throughout, as they focused on building partnerships and preserving wickets on a pitch expected to get tougher as the game progressed.

South Africa dropped four clear chances — three of them offered by Shafique on 0, 15 and 41, and another by Masood on 71 — which proved costly.

They also saw several edges fall short of the cordon or short leg. Despite these misses, Maharaj was the most effective of the bowlers, taking key wickets and finding some turn and bounce. He dismissed Masood, who top-edged a sweep to Marco Jansen, and later sent back Babar Azam through a superb one-handed catch by Tony de Zorzi at silly mid-off.

Earlier, Kagiso Rabada found the outside edge of Shafique in the first over, but Tristan Stubbs dropped the chance at third slip. Marco Jansen, sharing the new ball, beat Shafique’s inside edge, the ball brushing the stumps without dislodging the bails. Harmer provided the breakthrough when he bowled Imam-ul-Haq, and continued to trouble the batters with drift and spin.

Pakistan reached lunch at 95 for 1 and carried on steadily in the afternoon, with Shafique bringing up his sixth Test fifty before edging Harmer down the leg side for 57. Masood kept the scoreboard ticking with confident strokes, particularly against the spinners, before falling short of a century.

Saud Shakeel was batting on 42 at stumps, holding firm with Salman Agha after Rabada struck with the second new ball in the 85th over to trap Mohammad Rizwan lbw for 19.

At the close of play, Pakistan were 259 for 5 in 91 overs — a position of control built around Masood and Shafique’s contributions, despite South Africa’s persistent bowling and numerous missed opportunities in the field.

Brief scores:

Pakistan 259/5 in 91 overs (Shan Masood 87, Abdullah Shafique 57; Keshav Maharaj 2-63, Simon Harmer 2-75) against South Africa

–IANS

hs/bsk/