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RAWALPINDI: Pakistan were well placed on 95-1 at lunch on the opening day of the second and final Test against South Africa in Rawalpindi on Monday.

Opener Abdullah Shafique lived dangerously in reaching 37 and with him Shan Masood was on 38 after Pakistan won the toss on another spin-friendly pitch at Rawalpindi stadium.

The skipper Masood batted aggressively, hitting three sixes and a four, while Shafique scored four fours as the duo made 60 for the unbeaten second wicket.

South Africa’s only breakthrough came by off-spinner Simon Harmer, who bowled Imam-ul-Haq for 17 with a sharp turner that beat the bat and hit off-stump.

Fast bowler Kagiso Rabada initially swung the new ball but saw Tristan Stubbs drop Shafique in the slips off the fourth ball of the match for nought.

Having won the first Test in Lahore by 93 runs, Pakistan strengthened their attack by including a third spinner in Asif Afridi, dropping fast bowler Hasan Ali.

At 38 years and 299 days, Asif becomes the second oldest Pakistani Test debutant, behind Miran Bakhsh, who made his debut at 47 years and 284 days against India in 1955.

South Africa included experienced spinner Keshav Maharaj, who missed the first Test with injury, and added Marco Jansen to partner Rabada in the pace attack.

DUBAI: Dubai Basketball continued their unbeaten run in the ABA League with a hard-fought 81-77 victory over newcomers U-BT Cluj-Napoca from Romania at Coca-Cola Arena on Sunday.

Following strong performances in their debut EuroLeague campaign, the city’s first home basketball club once again demonstrated composure and depth to remain flawless across competitions.

The matchup against Cluj-Napoca was closely contested despite Dubai controlling the pace for most of the game. Late in the fourth quarter, the Romanian side mounted a strong comeback led by Dusan Miletic but Dubai maintained focus in the final minutes to secure the win.

Head Coach Jurica Golemac praised the team and fans: “Today we were expecting a very difficult game, and that’s what happened. We needed energy after the week that took us out.

“We found that the crowd was what was giving us the energy again, with our fans helping us in the most crucial moments. Again, one more time, we won the game with defense, with strong energy and physicality.”

Mfiondu Kabengele once again led with a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds, anchoring Dubai on both ends of the floor. McKinley Wright added 11 points in a standout performance, while Sertac Sanli contributed 10.

Making his debut for Dubai Basketball, Sanli was credited with turning the game around in a tied-up final quarter. “We didn’t play well the whole game, but we showed good hustle, especially in the second half, and managed to get the win.”

“I know that game by game, I’ll get better — I’ll understand my teammates more, understand the coach better, and grow with the team. We still have a long way to go, but I believe we’ll keep improving every game.”

Dubai Basketball will have a two-week away stint with their next match against LDLC ASVEL in Lyon. At home they will play ABA League reigning champions Partizan on Nov. 3 at Coca-Cola Arena.