HASAN, YASIR SET PAKISTAN ON VICTORY PATH

MEDIUM pacer Hasan Ali and leg-spinner Yasir Shah took five wickets apiece to set Pakistan on the victory path on the third day of the first Test against New Zealand in Abu Dhabi yesterday. Hasan took his maiden five-wicket haul with 5-45 while Yasir finished with 5-110 – his 14th five-wicket feat in an innings – as New Zealand collapsed from 220-4 to 249 all out soon after tea. That left Pakistan with 176 to win the Test and at close they were 37-0 with Imam-ul-Haq on 25 not out and Mohammad Hafeez unbeaten on eight, needing another 139 to win with all ten wickets in hand and two days to play. With the Sheikh Zayed Stadium pitch not worrisome for batting Pakistan has high hopes of enforcing a 1-0 lead in the three-match series while New Zealand can take heart from the fact that Pakistan lost a Test here against Sri Lanka by 21 runs after set 136 to win last year. Bradley-John Watling with 59 and Henry Nicholls with 55 had defied Pakistan in the post lunch session with a fighting stand of 112 for the fifth wicket but Yasir took four wickets off just 15 balls to bring his team back into contention. Pakistan took the second new ball with the total at 201-4 soon after tea and Yasir had Nicholls caught beautifully by wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed and then in his next over trapped Coiln de Grandhomme leg-before for three. Nicholls hit three boundaries in his 171-ball resistancepacked knock. The second Test is in Dubai (Nov 24-28) and the third in Abu Dhabi (Dec 3-7).