DUBAI: Pakistan opener Mohammad Hafeez scored a patient half-century to build on some good work by bowlers on the second day of the first cricket Test against South Africa here Saturday. Hafeez scored 60 during an opening stand of 105 with Taufiq Umer (42) to guide Pakistan to 144-2 after paceman Umar Gul chipped in with three wickets off 20 balls to wrap South Africa's first-innings to 380 all out. Experienced batsman Younis Khan was unbeaten on 21 and Azhar Ali was 12 not out as Pakistan trail by 236 runs with eight wickets intact. Pakistan will pin their hopes on Younis – playing his first Test since July last year – to build up a decisive first-innings lead as the pitch was expected to take spin on the last two days of the five-day match. Hafeez, playing his first Test for three years, and Umer, playing his first since 2006, gave Pakistan a sound start, countering the three-pronged South African pace attack with confidence. Earlier, Gul (3-100) led Pakistan's fightback and was ably supported by left-arm spinner Abdul Rehman (3-101) and Saeed Ajmal (2-95) as Pakistan dismissed seven South African batsmen for 69 runs. Pakistan, who had to pull out experienced batsman Mohammad Yousuf minutes before the toss Friday, also lost paceman Wahab Riaz because of a side strain which will prevent him from bowling in the innings. Riaz, who will bat if needed in the first Test, was ruled out of the second, starting in Abu Dhabi from Nov. 20, after MRI scans revealed he needed four to five weeks for recovery. Butt's lawyer quits Suspended Pakistan cricketer Salman Butt suffered a blow Saturday in his fight to have his name cleared over spot-fixing allegations after his lawyer withdrew from the case. “I don't think the suspended players will get justice, so I have withdrawn from the case,” Aftab Gul told Pakistani media of the case which will be heard in Qatar from Jan. 6-11 next year. Salman, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir were provisionally suspended by the International Cricket Council (ICC) last month over allegations of spot-fixing during Pakistan's tour of England. Gul, along with another lawyer Khalid Ranjha, represented Salman during the appeal against the suspension, which was dismissed last month. The ICC Friday announced a three-man panel led by Michael Beloff to hear the case of the players in which the actual charges levelled against the players will be examined. Official resigns The head of an influential Pakistani parliamentary committee on sports has resigned in frustration at the state of affairs in national cricket. “The state of cricket affairs is before everyone, it is in poor shape and yet nothing is being done to change the tide,” Iqbal Muhammad Ali, who headed the National Assembly standing committee on sports, told a news conference Saturday. “I am resigning because the government has not bothered to implement any of the recommendations by this committee for improvement and betterment of sports in the country,” Iqbal added.
