Pathum Nissanka’s phenomenal double century led Sri Lanka to a 42-run win over Afghanistan in the first ODI of the three-match ODI series which started today at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy.
The Afghanistan skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi decided to bowl first in fantastic batting conditions while the hosts came with thee frontline seamers after a long time at home.
Sri Lanka Playing XI: Pathum Nissanka, Avishka Fernando, Kusal Mendis (c/w), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Janith Liyanage, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Dilshan Madushanka, Dushmantha Chameera, Pramod Madushan
Afghanistan Playing XI: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Alikhil (w), Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Fareed Ahmad Malik
Avishka Fernando opened the batting with Pathum Nissanka who made his return to ODI cricket after missing out the Zimbabwe series with a suspected case of dengue. The right-hand duo went all guns blazing in the first 10 overs, finding plenty of boundaries.
They smashed 36 runs in the first two overs of Fareed Ahmad and finished the batting powerplay with 90 runs on the board. Soon after, Nissanka stroked a 31-ball fifty as Sri Lanka went past the 100-run mark in 12.1 overs.
After three disappointing outings against Zimbabwe, Fernando managed to get his 6th ODI fifty in 55 balls as two openers continued to pile on the runs. Ahmad redeemed himself after being expensive in his first spell as he provided the first breakthrough for Afghanistan.
The 182-run partnership became Sri Lanka’s first century opening stand in nine innings, which put the islanders in a great position for a massive score. Fernando was the batter to be dismissed after a run-a-ball 88 which consisted 8 fours & 3 sixes.
Nissanka though managed to convert his start to a big one, reaching the three-figure mark in 88 deliveries. Meanwhile, skipper Kusal Mendis struggled in the middle as Mohammad Nabi got rid of him for a 31-ball 16.
Nissanka shared another blazing century stand with Sadeera Samarawickrama before becoming the first Sri Lankan batter to reach 150 mark at home, going past Thilakaratne Dilshan’s 144 against Zimbabwe in 2011 World Cup. Ahmad has broken that partnership with the wicket of Samarawickrama who stroked quick-fire 45 runs during that period.
However, It was no stopping Nissanka in Pallekele as he entered the record books for becoming the first-ever Sri Lankan to score a double-hundred in ODI cricket, surpassing the former great Sanath Jayasuriya’s 189 against India. The latter’s magnificent knock also marked the third-fastest ODI double century when he reached the milestone in 136 balls.
He smashed a six and a four in the final two deliveries in the innings as they rack up 120 runs in the last 10 overs which took Sri Lanka to their second-highest ODI total of 381/3 at home. Nissanka remained unbeaten on 210 off just 139 balls while blasting 20 fours and 8 sixes, taking the Afghan bowlers to the cleaners.
On the other hand, the Afghan bowlers were under the pump as Ahmad was the pick of the bowlers with 2/79 while Nabi grabbed a wicket conceding only 44 runs in the Pallekele run-fest.
Pramod Madushan removed both the Afghan openers before castling skipper Shahidi in the 6th over, leaving the visitors at 19/3. Dushmantha Chameera, who struck twice in the batting powerplay, dismissed Rahmat Shah and Gulbadin Naib which put them in all sorts of trouble earlier in their chase with 5 down for 55 runs.
Somehow, Azmatullah Omarzai and Mohammad Nabi were able to revive the Afghanistan chase with a record-breaking 242-run stand for the 6th wicket as the duo stitched together in Afghanistan’s highest-ever 6th-wicket partnership in ODIs.
During this period, Nabi claimed his 2nd ODI hundred and Omarzai registered his first in this format. Madushan made the end of that massive partnership with the wicket of Nabi. The former stroked his highest ODI score of 136 off 130 balls while hitting 15 fours and 3 sixes.
At the end, the target was too much to chase for Afghanistan, ending up with 339/6 in their 50 overs which sealed a 42-run win for the hosts. Omarzai was sensational with the bat as he accumulated an unbeaten 149-run knock in 115 balls, compiling 13 fours and 6 sixes.
Result
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pathum Nissanka | not out | 210 | 139 | 20 | 8 | 151.08 |
| Avishka Fernando | c Ibrahim Zadran b Fareed Ahmad | 88 | 88 | 8 | 3 | 100.00 |
| Kusal Mendis | c Gulbadin Naib b Mohammad Nabi | 16 | 31 | 1 | 0 | 51.61 |
| Sadeera Samarawickrama | c Azmatullah Omarzai b Fareed Ahmad | 45 | 36 | 4 | 1 | 125.00 |
| Charith Asalanka | not out | 7 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 87.50 |
| Extras | 15 (b 0 , lb 3 , nb 2, w 10, pen 0) |
| Total | 381/3 (50 Overs, RR: 7.62) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fazal Haq Farooqi | 9 | 0 | 77 | 0 | 8.56 | |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | 6 | 0 | 55 | 0 | 9.17 | |
| Fareed Ahmad | 9 | 1 | 79 | 2 | 8.78 | |
| Gulbadin Naib | 8 | 0 | 61 | 0 | 7.62 | |
| Noor Ahmad | 8 | 0 | 62 | 0 | 7.75 | |
| Mohammad Nabi | 10 | 0 | 44 | 1 | 4.40 | |
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rahmanullah Gurbaz | b Pramod Madushan | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 33.33 |
| Ibrahim Zadran | c Pathum Nissanka b Pramod Madushan | 4 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 57.14 |
| Rahmat Shah | c Kusal Mendis b Dushmantha Chameera | 7 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 50.00 |
| Hashmatullah Shahidi | b Pramod Madushan | 7 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 63.64 |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | not out | 149 | 115 | 13 | 6 | 129.57 |
| Gulbadin Naib | c Pathum Nissanka b Dushmantha Chameera | 16 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 228.57 |
| Mohammad Nabi | c & b Pramod Madushan | 136 | 130 | 15 | 3 | 104.62 |
| Ikram Alikhil | not out | 10 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 71.43 |
| Extras | 9 (b 0 , lb 3 , nb 1, w 5, pen 0) |
| Total | 339/6 (50 Overs, RR: 6.78) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dilshan Madushanka | 9 | 0 | 65 | 0 | 7.22 | |
| Pramod Madushan | 10 | 0 | 75 | 4 | 7.50 | |
| Dushmantha Chameera | 7.3 | 0 | 55 | 2 | 7.53 | |
| Wanidu Hasaranga | 10 | 0 | 57 | 0 | 5.70 | |
| Maheesh Theekshana | 10 | 0 | 56 | 0 | 5.60 | |
| Janith Liyanage | 3 | 0 | 25 | 0 | 8.33 | |
| Charith Asalanka | 0.3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10.00 | |
