Sri Lanka avoids follow-on in 2nd test vs Pakistan

Kumar Sangakkara and Angelo Mathews put on an unbroken 89 run stand as Sri Lanka avoided the follow on and progressed to 367-5 at lunch on the final day of the second test against Pakistan on Wednesday.

Sri Lanka still trails Pakistan by 184 runs in the first innings after the visitors declared on 551, but with the match looking to end in a draw, its 1-0 lead in the three match series appears safe as it eyes its first series win since 2009

After resuming on the overnight total of 278-5 at Sinhalese Sports Club, former captain Kumar Sangakkara only added 12 runs in the first hour of the morning, but went to the break on 187 not out.

There was more aggression after the first hour as Sangakkara gave offspinner Saeed Ajmal the charge and smashed him for six over long-on.

Sangakkara's knock came off 341 deliveries with 15 fours and a six, nearing his ninth double hundred. In the first test at Galle, the left-hander was left stranded on 199 as he ran out of partners.

Mathews was 46 not out with four fours and a six at lunch.

A late burst by left-arm seamer Junaid Khan and Pakistan's spin bowlers had seen Sri Lanka slipping from 236-1 to 278-5 on day four, and with the new ball only four overs old, the Sri Lankans were watchful in the morning.

Junaid was sharp again in a five over spell in the first session Wednesday and conceded just two runs.

More than four sessions of the second test have been lost due to rain on the last three days.