Nauman Ali’s seven-wicket haul rattled Sri Lanka and helped Pakistan defeat the hosts by an innings and 222 runs. With this win, Pakistan also sealed the series 2-0.
Brilliant bowling performances from Pakistan bowlers after the tremendous batting display from their batters helped the team to bundle out the hosts on a low total in the innings as well. Naseem Shah finally managed to get three wickets in the last innings whereas Nauman Ali dismantled the Sri Lankan batting line-up which handed Pakistan a convincing victory over the hosts to claim the series 2-0.
The right-arm pacer set the tone for his teammate Nauman Ali who was just brilliant with his bowling spell of 7/70. Nauman, 36, made a solid comeback following all the criticism and thrashed the batting line of Sri Lanka after they were trailing by 410 runs.
Pakistan declared their first innings at 576-5 soon after Mohammad Rizwan completed his half-century within starting two overs on the fourth day.
In a one-sided contest, between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, Nauman Ali, the Pakistani spinner, made a significant impact early on. He managed to dismiss a Sri Lankan batsman, leading to a break for lunch with Sri Lanka’s score at 81-1. After the break, Nauman continued his excellent spin attack and quickly took five more wickets.
Before the tea break, Nauman was unstoppable, claiming all six wickets and Sri Lanka was left with a score of 143-6. When the players returned after tea, Naseem took some time to get his first wicket of the innings.
During this period, there was a close call with an ‘out’ decision, which was overturned. Nauman, displaying incredible skill, bagged his seventh wicket, bringing him close to the world record of getting all ten wickets in a single innings.
Eventually, Naseem joined the wicket-taking party and grabbed the last three wickets in a row in a stylish manner. Angelo Mathews from Sri Lanka showed great resilience, scoring an unbeaten 63 runs, including seven boundaries and two maximums, in his team’s fight.
Moving on to Pakistan’s batting performance, Rizwan (37*) and Agha Salman (132*) resumed their innings on the fourth day with the team’s score at 563-5. Rizwan quickly completed his half-century with some impressive shots before captain Babar Azam decided to declare the innings. This was Rizwan’s eighth fifty in Test cricket, and he replaced Sarfaraz Ahmed as a concussion substitute. Sarfaraz had to leave the field on the third day after being struck on the helmet by the first ball he faced.
Rizwan and Agha added 13 runs together on the fourth day, extending Pakistan’s lead to 410. Agha’s performance was remarkable as he scored an unbeaten 132 runs off 148 balls, including 15 fours and a six. Additionally, Abdullah Shafique achieved his maiden double-century during the match.
Overall, it was an exciting game of cricket with memorable performances from Nauman Ali, Agha Salman, and others, making it an enthralling contest for Pakistan fans around the world.
Comments 2