LAHORE, OCT 14: Spinner Noman Ali struck two crucial early wickets to give Pakistan an advantage as day three concluded with South Africa at 51-2 in 22 overs, needing 226 more runs to win the first Test at the Gaddafi Stadium on Tuesday.
Chasing 277, the Proteas suffered an early setback when captain Aiden Markram was dismissed by Noman Ali for just three runs off 11 balls, leaving the team at 13-1 in 5.5 overs.
Noman struck again shortly after, removing Wiaan Mulder for a duck, applying further pressure on the visitors.
Ryan Rickelton and Tony de Zorzi steadied the innings, putting on a 33-run partnership for the third wicket.
At stumps, South Africa were in a decent position with Rickelton unbeaten on 29 off 76 balls and De Zorzi on 16 off 44 deliveries.
Earlier, the Proteas had restricted Pakistan to 167 in 46.1 overs in their second innings, thanks to outstanding spells from Senuran Muthusamy and Simon Harmer.
Pakistan’s second innings began with an early blow as Imam-ul-Haq was dismissed for a duck, stumped by Kyle Verreynne off Harmer in just the second over, leaving the hosts at 2-1 in 1.4 overs.
Abdullah Shafique and Shan Masood tried to stabilize the innings with a 31-run partnership before Harmer struck again, dismissing Shan for seven off 17 balls.
By lunch, Pakistan were 36-2 in 11 overs, with Abdullah unbeaten on 21 and captain Babar Azam on one. The hosts held a first-innings lead of 145 runs and aimed to consolidate their advantage.
After the break, Abdullah and his partner added another 31 runs, with Abdullah approaching his half-century.
However, Muthusamy gave South Africa their third breakthrough, dismissing Shafique for 41 off 73 balls, leaving Pakistan at 64-3 in 19 overs.
Babar Azam then guided the innings, taking Pakistan past the 200-run mark with the score at 91-3 in 27 overs. Saud Shakeel found his rhythm, and together with Babar, they added a 50-run partnership.
The momentum shifted when Kagiso Rabada dismissed Babar for 42 off 72 balls, reducing Pakistan to 119-4 in 30.5 overs.
Mohammad Rizwan joined Saud Shakeel, and the pair added 31 runs before Muthusamy claimed Shakeel’s wicket for 38 off 53 balls. At tea, Salman Ali Agha joined Rizwan, who remained unbeaten on 14 off 26, as Pakistan reached 150-5 in 39.4 overs.
The final session belonged to South Africa. Harmer quickly removed Rizwan, clean bowled for 14, claiming his third wicket. In the next over, Muthusamy dismissed Shaheen Afridi for a duck, reducing Pakistan to 151-7 in 41.3 overs. Muthusamy then completed his five-wicket haul by dismissing Salman Ali Agha for four and Noman Ali for 11 in the same over. Harmer wrapped up the innings by removing Sajid Khan for one.
Muthusamy finished with impressive figures of 5/57 in 17 overs, while Harmer claimed four wickets and Rabada one, setting up an exciting chase for South Africa.
