(24) باب افْتِتَاحِ صَلاَةِ اللَّيْلِ بِرَكْعَتَيْنِ
This tradition has also been transmitted by Abu Hurairah through a different chain of narrators to the same effect. This version adds:
He should then prolong it afterwards as much as he likes.Abu Dawud said: This tradition has been transmitted by Hammad b. Salamah, Zuhair b. Mu'awiyah and a group of narrators from Hisham. They transmitted it as a statement of Abu Hurairah himself (mauquf).This tradition has also been transmitted by Ibn 'Awn from Muhammad (b. Sirin). This version has the wordings: These two rak'ahs were short.
Reference: Sunan Abi Dawud 1324
In-book reference: Book 5, Hadith 75
English translation: Book 5, Hadith 1319