Shoaib Malik, a bowling clone of Saqlain Mushtaq who had made his grade as a batsman after scoring a splendid ton against the West Indies at Sharjah, came in with the apparent intention of stemming the rot. He could perhaps vouch for his own end only because his partner at the other end Abdul Razzaq was adjudged lbw off Vaas for a useful 24. Not able to hold the fort any longer, Shoaib became another victim of a brilliant Sangakkara-Fernando combination and was out for 13.

Thus, Pakistan, a thoroughbred batting line capable of piling up around 500 runs against the West Indies now looked like fizzling out cheaply.

With a total of only 176 for 7 a disaster was brewing up, unless the tail-enders could save the show. The fall of wickets one after the other did not diminish the enthusiasm of the spectators who continued beating the drums and playing flutes although the wickets were tumbling. At tea Pakistan was 198 for 7 with Rashid Latif (19) and Waqar Younis (17) struggling to hold the crease.

The Sri Lanka offensive paid off when in the 5th over of the morning Vaas made Taufeeq Umar (6) offer an easy catch to Samaraweera with the score only 18. Tragedy struck Pakistan again when prolific opener Shahid Afridi (9) was run out in the same over. Pakistan had lost their openers for 18 runs again showing up their problems in finding an opening pair. The newcomers on the crease, Younis Khan and Inzamam, however, brought some stability to the innings. The 1st hour of play yielded 40 runs.

Having overcome the initial set back, the two batsmen seemed almost in command to score runs at a brisk pace, adding occasional hits to the boundary and making the score board move more rapidly. The rise in run rate turned into rashness. It was around the 23rd over that Younis Khan was on the rampage perhaps encouraged by some wiley tossed up balls by Muralitharan. He hit 2 fours and a six in one over and lost his wicket playing on with a paddle sweep to the wrong ball too close in to his legs for a well scored 46. Inzamam followed on his heels, getting caught by Jayasuriya in the slips off Fernando for 29. At lunch Pakistan was in a perilous, 4 down with 108 runs.

The drought started when India backed out of a regular tour on political grounds two years ago. Then came the fateful September 11 disaster that struck a further blow to hosting international cricket in Pakistan.

Pakistan, Afghanistan's next-door neighbour, had to bear the brunt of the security concerns expressed by scheduled touring sides. The foreign teams cancelled their tours, not only causing the PCB a colossal loss of funds but also depriving the cricket-loving public of the fun of watching international cricket live. Another fall-out from the crisis was the Pakistan cricket team losing out on vital match practice.

The situation having eased up considerably, it is nice to see Sri Lanka coming over to play the final of the Asian Test Championship at Lahore. This match is in fact the unfinished agenda of a championship that commenced last year. India having declined to participate, only three teams - Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka - were left in the contest.

Both Pakistan and Sri Lanka having thrashed Bangladesh by an innings margin, the two teams jumped straight into the finals. It may be recalled that Pakistan won the first Asian Championship in 1999. Pakistan will thus be defending their title as Asian champions.

The Pakistan team features two major omissions. Prolific opener Saeed Anwar has either not recovered from his injury or is away on personal business. Former skipper Wasim Akram has been sidelined on the grounds of doubtful physical fitness, an assessment of the selectors that he has refuted in the press.

Out of those selected, Inzamam-ul-Haq remains pathetically out of form. Surprisingly, for a batsman of a very high caliber, the Pakistan vice-captain was seen struggling with the bat against Bangladesh, a rare phenomenon for the big man who has rarely faced such a crisis in his career. He is, however, quite capable of striking back at any time or can be a match-winner even on his own.

Two youngsters who gave remarkable performances against the West Indies at Sharjah could not possibly be ignored. The budding all-rounder Shoaib Malik, who played a match-winning innings in the second one-day game at Sharjah, fully justified his inclusion in the side. The same was the case with Mohammad Sami, who not only bowled Pakistan to victory but also joined the ranks of bowlers to perform a hat-trick in one-day games.

Sri Lanka also has a very balanced side. Giving Pakistan due credit, skipper Sanath Jayasuriya visualises a tough battle between the two teams. He is of the view that his team is now on the right track and direction, and with some excellent performances in the recent past, he expects his boys to do well in the final. With Marvan Atapattu, Mahela Jayawardene, Russel Arnold, Hashan Tillekeratne and Jayasuriya himself, the Sri Lankan team has plenty of depth in its batting line-up.

They will, however, feel the pinch of not having played any cricket in the last 10 weeks, compared to Pakistan who recently won the two-Test series against the West Indies at Sharjah. One should not, however, lose sight of trump card Muttiah Muralitharan, who can take Sri Lanka to the victory podium single-handedly on his day. Both sides look determined to win, which indicates that it will be an exciting battle to watch.

The pitch is expected to be sporting. The weather is clear with the excellent daylight required for some good cricket. Athar Zaidi and Darrel Harper will be the field umpires, while Saleem Badar is the TV umpire; the ICC match referee is AM Ebrahim of Zimbabwe. Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to field first.