Pakistan raise all-round game in easy win
Half-centuries from Shoaib Malik and Younis Khan and a three-wicket haul from Shahid Afridi helped Pakistan beat Sri Lanka by 33 runs
The Bulletin by Dileep Premachandran
17-Sep-2007
Pakistan 189 for 6 (Malik 57, Younis 51, Malinga 3-43) beat Sri Lanka 156 for 9 (Dilshan 38, Silva 38, Afridi 3-18) by 33 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
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Magnificent half-centuries from Shoaib Malik, the captain, and Younis Khan
propelled Pakistan to a formidable total and a miserly three-wicket spell
from Shahid Afridi then choked the life out of the Sri Lankan chase as
they romped to a facile 33-run victory at the Wanderers. Sri Lanka had
started superbly, with Dilhara Fernando producing an impeccable spell of 2
for 17, but their subsequent nightmare was best summed up by the plight of
the legendary Sanath Jayasuriya, pummelled for 64 in his four overs and
then knocked over for just five.
Malik and Younis added 101 at a tremendous clip after Pakistan were
struggling at 33 for 3. Once again, they got
no sort of start, with Salman Butt and Imran Nazir failing to make an
impression yet again. Nazir pulled Fernando for a six behind square, but
was utterly clueless about a slower ball from Chaminda Vaas that he gently
bunted to cover.
Butt got another start, but was cleaned up by a tremendous delivery from
Fernando that was timed at 144.5 km/hr. And after Mohammad Hafeez had come
in and clipped Vaas for two fours, Fernando delivered another scorcher, a
yorker that crashed into leg stump at searing pace.
But with Vaas bowling out and Fernando taken out of the attack after three
superb overs, the pressure eased. Younis got going with a pull for four
off Lasith Malinga, and Malik greeted Jayasuriya's entrance with a huge
swipe that just cleared the man at long-on. Even then, Pakistan had
reached just 69 at the halfway stage, scarcely the sort of total that
would have given Mahela Jayawardene too many headaches.
It started to unravel for the Lankans after that though, with Gayan
Wijekoon and Jayasuriya repeatedly lofted through or over midwicket as the
run-rate mounted alarmingly. Younis struck a couple of meaty sixes over
midwicket on his way to a 32-ball 50, and Malik followed suit in just 27
deliveries courtesy some scorching strokes down the ground and through the
leg side.
Both men departed lofting Malinga into the deep, but there was still time
for a 17-run cameo from Afridi, and a crisp contribution from
Misbah-ul-Haq, who followed up his splendid knock against India will two
mighty sixes in Jayasuriya's final over.
Sri Lanka's pursuit of 190 started in disastrous fashion, with Upul
Tharanga top-edging Mohammad Asif to third man before he'd opened his
account, and there was further drama in the opening over when a Jayasuriya
miscue was dropped by Sohail Tanvir at short fine leg.
Tanvir redeemed himself in the best possible fashion though, yorking
Jaysuriya with his very first delivery. That left Kumar Sangakkara and
Jayawardene to rebuild the innings, and Sangakkara set about it with a
magnificent six over backward point off Asif. His defiance didn't last
though, and an unfortunate dismissal - bowled off the arm while going for
the pull - really appeared to have put the skids on Sri Lanka.
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But after Jayawardene clipped Tanvir for a beautiful six over square leg,
Chamara Silva concentrated his energy on Asif's final over. A pull and a
cut started it, and when Asif bowled a no-ball, the free hit was hooked
for six over fine leg. With Shoaib Malik watching frustrated, Asif was
rather harshly called for another no-ball. This time, Jayawardene edged
the free hit for four as 22 came from the over.
Chamara Silva greeted Mohammad Hafeez with a sweep for four, but it was
soon apparent that the slow bowlers would be Pakistan's trump card. Both
Hafeez and Shahid Afridi gave next to nothing away, and the pressure
finally told when Jayawardene mowed an Afridi delivery to Umar Gul at deep
midwicket. He had made 28, adding 53 with Silva.
Silva was the last hope, but after heaving and then deftly cutting Afridi
for two fours to move to 38, he was flummoxed by a full delivery that
crashed into the stumps. Jehan Mubarak and Gayan Wijekoon both failed to
trouble the scorers, and the Pakistani tactic of saving Gul for the end
was amply justified as the match was efficiently closed out.
Tillakaratne Dilshan took three sixes from the penultimate over bowled by
Hafeez, but that was of no more than nuisance value after an emphatic
statement of intent from Malik's men. For Sri Lanka, it was a rude wake-up
call, and they will now most likely have to beat Australia to make the
last four.
Dileep Premachandran is associate editor of Cricinfo