Younis, Yousuf help Pakistan salvage a draw

The second Test between India and Pakistan ended in a draw in Kolkata but India still lead the three-match series 1-0.

India failed to finish the job after pushing Pakistan to the wall as stand-in skipper Younis Khan struck a chanceless century under pressure to salvage a draw on the final day of the second cricket Test in Kolkata on Tuesday.

Set a winning target of 345, Pakistan were struggling at 78/4 in the post lunch session, before the seasoned pair of Younis (107 not out) and Mohammed Yousuf (44 not out) stitched together a match-saving 136-run partnership to deny India a Eden Gardens victory.

Replying to India’s second innings essay of 184/4 declared, Pakistan had reached 214/4 in 77 overs when the match was called off with four mandatory overs still remaining.

Younis, who had scored a hundred on this ground in Pakistan’s previous appearance in 2004-05, gave yet another fine exhibition of batsmanship to complete his 15th hundred in 57 Tests in an innings spanning 214 minutes. He faced 182 balls and struck 14 boundaries.

Yousuf, however, was lucky to survive on 32 when short leg fielders Dinesh Kaarthick and Wasim Jaffer failed to react to a bad-pad edge of a quicker delivery.

With Indian skipper Anil Kumble declaring 38 minutes into the day’s play, Pakistan were left with a minimum of 81 overs to make a match of it.

However, the tourists lost Yaseer Hamid (14) as early as the seventh over with 23 on the board, as the batsman went for an uppish drive off Zaheer Khan who stretched to his right to accept the catch.

The lunch was taken with Pakistan on 37/1.