Opener Ahmed Shehzad scored a fighting half-century to guide Pakistan to 169-2 at tea on the third day of the third and final Test against Sri Lanka in Sharjah today.
The right-handed opener was unbeaten on 94 - his second Test fifty - and with him Younis Khan was unbeaten on eight with Pakistan still needing another 59 runs to avoid the follow-on.
Pakistan, trailing 1-0 in the three-match series after losing the second Test in Dubai by nine wickets, lost opener Khurram Manzoor (52) and Azhar Ali (eight) in a dour tussle between the two teams.
The first Test ended in a draw in Abu Dhabi.
Pakistan managed only 23 in the first hour after resuming at 19-0 and their attempts to score quickly were also thwarted in the afternoon session.
Khurram, who scored 73 in the second Test, fell soon after lunch as he tried to glance a leg-side delivery from paceman Shaminda Eranga but only managed to snick it to wicketkeeper Prasanna Jayawardene.
He hit four boundaries during his 125-ball innings.
Ali, dropped for the first two Tests, battled for 27 deliveries and departed after edging off-spinner Dilruwan Perera to slip.
Both batsmen challenged the umpire's decisions but ended up wasting both Pakistan's referrals.
Shehzad, whose place was in danger after two failures in Dubai, reached his fifty with a single off Angelo Mathews. He has so far hit seven boundaries in his career-best innings.
