Younus Khan continued his red hot form and was unbeaten on 53 after a perfect morning session as he powered Pakistan to 118 for two wickets at lunch on the third day of the second Test against New Zealand on Wednesday.
The former captain, whose last six test innings included three centuries and a double hundred, dominated his unbroken 86-run partnership with Azhar Ali (35) for the third wicket.
Pakistan still trail New Zealand by 285 runs but they enjoyed a smooth session, scoring 84 from 31 overs without loss.
After cheaply removing Pakistan's openers on Tuesday, New Zealand needed early wickets to take the upper hand but were thwarted by Younus and Azhar, who negotiated pace bowlers with aplomb and used their feet effectively against spinners.
Younus, who turns 37 later this month, was the more aggressive of the two, hitting off-spinner Mark Craig for two sixes - one over long on and the other over midwicket.
The fluent right-hander hit the spinner for his sixth boundary to bring up his 29th test fifty in the final over before the break.
Leg-spinner Ish Sodhi occasionally troubled Azhar but could not translate it into a wicket for the visitors, who trail the three-match series 1-0. – Reuters