Wigan Athletic were lucky to come away with a point from their Premier League clash on Saturday after Sunderland dominated the chances throughout the match.

Sunderland had taken an early lead in the first half thanks to an own goal by Titus Bramble but were unable to put away their chances, allowing Wigan to come back and equalize through Amr Zaki in the 78th minute. The hosts were reduced to 10 men in the 86th minute after Lee Cattermole was sent off but hung on to claim a vital point from the match.

New signings Anton Ferdinand and George McCartney were handed their debut starts for Sunderland with manager Roy Keane looking for an improvement in his side's performances after a woeful defeat to Manchester City before the international break.

The Black Cats started the match strongly and were soon in the lead when Bramble headed Steed Malbranque's cross into his own net. Wigan tried to respond by pouring men forward but were unable to find a way past a determined Sunderland defense with the visitors looking dangerous on the break.

Djibril Cisse and Kieron Richardson had decent chances to double the lead for Sunderland but were unable to hit the target as Wigan somehow managed to go into the second half conceding just one goal. The hosts stepped up the pressure in the second half and were rewarded 12 minutes from the final whistle when Zaki latched on to a poor clearance by the Sunderland defense before slotting the ball past Gordon.

Wigan were reduced to 10 men in the 86th minute when referee Rob Styles showed a second yellow card to Cattermole but Sunderland failed to take advantage of their numerical superiority as both the teams ended the match with a point each.