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Day 1: Five wickets for Arshad

Nelson Clare

Pakistan off-spinner Arshad Khan took five for 38 in his third Test as Sri Lanka were dismissed for 231 on the opening day of the Asian Test Championship final here yesterday.

Arshad ran through the lower order by taking five of the last six wickets as injury-hit Sri Lanka struggled on the slow pitch at the Bangabandhu National Stadium.

Pakistan then reached 33 without loss in 10 overs before the close with Saeed Anwar unbeaten on 16 and his opening partner, Wajahatullah Wasti, on seven.

Sri Lanka batted after winning the toss but were hit by the loss of three wickets in the first 20 minutes, including two for captain Wasim Akram off successive balls in his second over.

Day 2: Ijaz takes century off careless Sri Lanka

Kuldip Lal in Dhaka

Ijaz Ahmed hammered an unbeaten 118 as Pakistan pinned lack-lustre Sri Lanka against the ropes in the Asian Test Championship final here yesterday.

Pakistan, replying to Sri Lanka's 231, took advantage of their rivals' depleted bowling and shoddy fielding to pile up 299 for two by the close of the second day.

Ijaz shared an unbroken stand of 182 for the third wicket with Inzamam-ul Haq (77 not out) to build on the solid start provided by opener Saeed Anwar's 57.

Pakistan, who lead by 68 runs with eight wickets in hand, are well-placed to force an outright win over the next three days on the slow wicket.

Even a draw will ensure Wasim Akram's men the title since they have six bonus points against two by the Sri Lankans. ``It's a great position to be in,'' Akram said. ``We must win outright from here, because taking the title on points will not be very satisfying.''

Pakistan missed a third batting point by one run when Ijaz played out a maiden in the last over of the day bowled by leg-spinner Upul Chandana.

Some 5,000 Bangladeshi fans who braved the stifling heat at the Bangabandhu National stadium were treated to a flurry of big hits with the second new ball late in the day. Left-arm seamer Chaminda Vaas was hit for four boundaries in one over, the first two off successive balls by Ijaz to reach his 11th Test century. The second new ball produced 69 runs, livening up an otherwise dreary day's play which saw Pakistan score only 149 runs in the first two sessions.

The Sri Lankans, without their injured trio of Arjuna Ranatunga, Sanath Jayasuriya and Muttiah Murlitharan, helped Pakistan's cause by a butter-fingered display in the field.

Inzamam, struggling to find form, had not yet scored when Avishka Gunawardena let slip an easy catch at short-leg off Russel Arnold.

Ijaz was then missed on 59 behind the stumps by Hashan Tillekeratne, who wore the gloves after lunch when wicketkeeper Romesh Kaluwitharana fell sick during the lunch break.

Anwar, who had been dropped twice on Friday evening, batted through the morning session as Pakistan took their overnight score of 33-0 to 112 by lunch.

The left-handed opener contributed just 36 runs to Pakistan's 79 in the two hoursbefore lunch.

Sri Lanka's lone success in the session came when left-arm seamer Sajeewa De Silva forced Wajahatullah Wasti to edge a simple catch to Mahela Jayawardene at second slip. Wasti, who hit a century in each innings of the league match against the Sri Lankans at Lahore last week, made 22.

Anwar added just five runs to his lunch score of 52 when part-time spinner Arnold removed him with an easy return catch in his first over.

Ijaz and Inzamam, however, settled down nicely to help Pakistan reach 182 for two by tea and then flayed the second new ball which was claimed at 230.

With the wicket offering nothing to Sri Lanka's three-man seam attack, stand-in captain Aravinda De Silva rued playing just one specialist spinner in debutant Chandana.

Chandana conceded 63 runs in 17 unsuccessful overs. Vaas went for 89 runs from his 28 and Sajeewa, who limped off the field in the final session, gave away 45 from his 17.

Day 3: Second Wasim hat-trick gives Pakistan control

WASIM AKRAM became the third bowler to claim two Test hat-tricks as Pakistan took a firm grip against Sri Lanka on the third day of the Asian Test final in Bangladesh yesterday.

The Pakistan captain's feat in consecutive matches followed double centuries by Ijaz Ahmed and Inzamam-ul-Haq, which left Sri Lanka on the brink of a heavy defeat.

Ijaz made 211 and Inzamam 200 not out as Pakistan ground down the Sri Lankan attack to pile up a mammoth 594 shortly before close of the third day's play in Dhaka.

Wasim, having achieved a hat-trick with his left-arm seamers in last week's Test against the Sri Lankans in Lahore, this time devastated a tired top order in the second innings.

He had Avishka Gunawardena caught brilliantly in the slips by Shahid Afridi off his fifth delivery and shattered nightwatchman Chaminda Vaas's stumps off the next. After an over from Shoaib Akhtar at the other end, Wasim removed Mahela Jayawardena with his first ball of the next over through a simple catch in the slips.

Wasim joined Hugh Trumble and Jimmy Matthews, both Australian, as two-time hat-trick bowlers - Matthews took his against South Africa in one match - and the Pakistani overshadowed masterly batting by his colleagues Ijaz and Inzamam, who recorded career-best scores on the slow wicket at the Bangabandhu National Stadium.

Ijaz hit 23 boundaries and a six during his nine-hour vigil. Inzamam, retiring hurt with cramp on 156, returned at the fall of the sixth wicket to complete his double century in last man Shoaib Akhtar's company.

As Akhtar stood his ground, Inzamam moved from 172 to 200 with the help of two sixes and a boundary off Upul Chandana. It was his seventh Test century.

The third-wicket partnership realised 352 runs and, when Inzamam limped off, Ijaz added another 14 with next man Yousuf Youhanna.

Ijaz was finally stumped by Hashan Tillekeratne, standing in for the sick Romesh Kaluwitharana, to give debutant Chandana his first Test wicket after 33 expensive overs.

Chandana claimed six of the last seven wickets to finish with six for 179 as Pakistan gifted their wickets towards the end, much to the relief of a tired attack.