Afghanistan ‘A’ defeated Sri Lanka ‘A’ by 5 wickets in the fifth and final Unofficial ODI of the five-match series played today (7th May) at Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium in Hambantota. But the hosts managed to clinch the series 3-2.
After been put into bat first, the hosts were in a spot of bother as they lost 3 top order wickets for 55 runs inside first 11 overs. The middle order batters Pasindu Sooriyabandara and Nipun Karunanayake then steadied the ship with a half-century stand for the 4th wicket.
The in-form batter Sonal Dinusha then joined Sooriyabandara at the middle and the duo also managed to uplift the innings with a vital 49-run stand for the 5th wicket before Dinusha lost his wicket for 21 runs.
After being 154/4, the hosts witnessed a major batting collapse to lose the remaining 6 wickets for just 43 runs to be bowled out for 197. Sooriyabandara put up a lone fight for Sri Lanka ‘A’ notching up his second half-century of the series.
Naveed Zadran and Nangeyalia Kharote were the standout performers with the ball for the visitors as they shared 7 wickets between them.
The seamer Mohamed Shiraz once again gave Sri Lanka a good start with the ball as he managed to claim 2 wickets in his first 2 overs to push the visitors onto backfoot.
However, the opening batter Riaz Hassan stood tall again for the visitors as he managed to resurrect the innings with the help of Shahidullah (47) and Darwish Rasooli (36). Hassan top scored for Afghanistan ‘A’ with an unbeaten knock of 74 as they chased down the target in the 45th over with 5 wickets in hand.
The one-off unofficial Test between the sides will be played from 11th to 14th May at P. Sara Oval Grounds in Colombo.
Brief Scores
Sri Lanka ‘A’– 197 (43) Pasindu Sooriyabandara 70, Minod Bhanuka 24, Sonal Dinusha 21, Naveed Zadran 4/45, Nangeyalia Kharote 3/31
Afghanistan ‘A’ – 198/5 (45) Riaz Hassan 74*, Shahidullah 47, Darwish Rasooli 36, Nangeyalia Kharote 27*, Mohamed Shiraz 2/23, Dushan Hemantha 2/46
Result – Afghanistan ‘A’ won by 5 wickets
 at Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium in Hambantota. But the hosts managed to clinch the series 3-2.){kind=link}