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Sri Lanka vs Pakistan, 2nd T20I at Colombo, , Aug 01 2015 - Ball by Ball Commentary

RESULT
2nd T20I (N), Colombo (RPS), August 01, 2015, Pakistan tour of Sri Lanka
PrevNext
(19.2/20 ov, T:173) 174/9

Pakistan won by 1 wicket (with 4 balls remaining)

Player Of The Match
46 (17) & 1/40
anwar-ali
Player Of The Series
54 runs • 3 wkts
shoaib-malik
New
PAK
Full commentary

10.50pm Shahid Afridi holds up a trophy with a silhouette of Afridi on it, in his star-man pose. Pakistan have won the Test, ODI and T20 legs of this Sri Lankan tour, it has been an awesome performance by them. That's it from all of us, we hope you've enjoyed our coverage. Until next time, ta ta!

Nigah: "Pakistan find another Abdul Razzaq in the shape of Anwar Ali."

Jakir: "46 is a lucky number for Pakistan. Last match Shehzad, Malik and Akmal scored 46 and Pakistan won... this time brilliant 46 from Anwar Ali.."

10.40pm Presentation time! First up, the Man of the Match. It is... Anwar Ali! "I'm not playing Malinga, I'm playing the ball," he says. "I just watched the ball."

Lasith Malinga: "I should have bowled well for the team. Today I didn't do that. I'm happy for the young players. Sri Lanka have a good future with their cricket. We had to get [Shahid Afridi] out early, Shehan has lot of experience in domestic cricket, that's why I brought him on."

Shoaib Malik wins the Player of the Series award. "Especially in your last years, you enjoy your cricket more. That's what I'm doing. When you're playing as an allrounder, you have to be ready for all these situations [bowling in the Powerplay]. It's very good [to play in T20 leagues]. You travel all over the world, meet different people, learn a lot."

Shahid Afridi: "170 was a chaseable total. We panicked early on, didn't play well early on. Awesome innings from Imad Wasim and Anwar Ali. Hopefully they will do really well in the future for the team. If I don't perform while bowling, there is more responsibility as captain [when I bat]. I've got an excellent bunch of guys. We have the next series against Zimbabwe, we will try some other youngsters as well, but this victory was very important for us. No more Mahela, no more Sangakkara, so Malinga is trying his best with these youngsters. The more they play, the more they will learn and improve. Thanks to the Sri Lankan board for their hospitality, and thanks to the crowd also."

Usman: "Anwar ALi is turning out to be such an asset for Pakistan. Bowls some good spells, fields like a champ and can beat the ball miles away... terrific"

Atif: "And no one should forget the importance of run taken by Irfan" -- Indeed. Remember that last over against Maxwell?

10.26pm Phew. What a game that was! Pakistan were 40 for 5 at one stage, going absolutely nowhere, but Afridi, Anwar and Imad have won it for them. There was some dew about, and that contributed to some pretty dire bowling from the Sri Lankans. Loads of short balls and full-tosses that Anwar simply kept swiping to and over the leg-side boundary.

19.2
6
Fernando to Imad Wasim, SIX runs

down the track, it's a slower ball, and Imad has finished with a six! It was angling in, right into the slot for him to swing cleanly through the line and launch that over long-on

Five off five. Imad Wasim on strike.

DanielAlexander: "Super over anyone?"

Beenod: "Somebody pinch me and pinch me hard, can't believe this is Pakistan batting and that too chasing!!!"

19.1
1
Fernando to Irfan, 1 run

slower ball on off stump and Irfan leans forward and squeezes the ball into the covers and gets off strike

Wow. Not only was that a suicidal second, it's left the last man Mohammad Irfan on strike. Binura Fernando, playing his second T20I, is defending six runs off the last over.

Mazhar Shehzaad: "so... the 56378283634th twist in this game "

end of over 1914 runs • 2 wickets
PAK: 167/9CRR: 8.78 RRR: 6.00
Imad Wasim18 (13b 2x4)
Lasith Malinga 4-0-40-1
Thisara Perera 4-0-27-1
18.6
1W
Malinga to Imad Wasim, 1 run, OUT

full and wide, comes forward and pokes it down to long-off. They take on Thisara's arm, go for a second, and it's proved to be a suicidal second. Good throw, straight over the stumps, and Malinga has the bails off quickly to have the diving Tanvir out by a good six inches

Sohail Tanvir run out (NLTC Perera/Malinga) 1 (1b 0x4 0x6 3m) SR: 100
18.5
1
Malinga to Tanvir, 1 run

slower ball angling away from Tanvir, who comes forward and pushes it gently into the cover point region and picks up a single

Phew, what an innings that was. It's left Pakistan eight to get from eight balls. Sohail Tanvir is the new batsman.

18.4
W
Malinga to Anwar Ali, OUT

another twist. Late, late twist. Slower ball outside off, and Anwar, who looks to swing that over the leg side, ends up getting a thin outside edge through to the keeper

Anwar Ali c †MDKJ Perera b Malinga 46 (17b 3x4 4x6 22m) SR: 270.58
18.3
4
Malinga to Anwar Ali, FOUR runs

low full-toss outside leg stump, and you do not bowl those to Anwar. Opens up his body and uses his wrists this time to find the gap at deep backward square leg

18.2
2
Malinga to Anwar Ali, 2 runs

back of a length slower ball and he goes back and across and works it to long leg. The fielder comes in, misfields, and Anwar gets an easy two

18.1
6
Malinga to Anwar Ali, SIX runs

gets his yorker slightly wrong, gives Anwar just enough hitting room. It's angling into him, and he opens up and absolutely smashes it over midwicket

Here's Malinga again. He's under a lot of pressure here. Pakistan need 20 from 12.

end of over 1812 runs
PAK: 153/7CRR: 8.50 RRR: 10.00
Anwar Ali34 (13b 2x4 3x6)
Imad Wasim17 (12b 2x4)
Thisara Perera 4-0-27-1
Shehan Jayasuriya 4-0-37-1
17.6
1
Perera to Anwar Ali, 1 run

there's that big back and across step. Perera bowls another slower ball, and Anwar pulls it down towards long leg

17.5
Perera to Anwar Ali, no run

another slower ball, follows Anwar as he backs away to make room. Swings at it, looking to hit through the off side, misses it, and it runs away past leg stump

17.4
4
Perera to Anwar Ali, FOUR runs

goes deep in his crease again with that big back-and-across step, and Perera bowls a full-toss outside off. Swipes hard, and again he bisects that gap between long-on and deep midwicket

17.3
6
Perera to Anwar Ali, SIX runs

another full-toss, down the leg side, and Anwar has absolutely hammered that. Just opened his front leg up and swung it away over deep square leg

17.2
Perera to Anwar Ali, no run

slower ball, back of the hand, very well bowled. Looked to make room to slap through the off side, missed, and the ball looped over the leg bail and rolled down to the keeper

17.1
1
Perera to Imad Wasim, 1 run

very full outside leg, smacks Imad on the pad as his head falls over while trying to flick

Wow. Pakistan were going nowhere at one point, but now they need a very gettable 32 from three overs. But they only have three wickets in hand. Can Thisara get Sri Lanka a breakthrough in his final over?

end of over 1721 runs
PAK: 141/7CRR: 8.29 RRR: 10.66
Anwar Ali23 (8b 1x4 2x6)
Imad Wasim16 (11b 2x4)
Shehan Jayasuriya 4-0-37-1
Lasith Malinga 3-0-26-0
16.6
4
Jayasuriya to Anwar Ali, FOUR runs

took a big back and across step, deep in his crease, and though it was flat and quick and full, he had made himself a bit of swinging room, given himself leverage to swipe it hard and flat into the gap between deep midwicket and long-on

16.5
6
Jayasuriya to Anwar Ali, SIX runs

full-toss down the leg side, and Anwar is down on one knee in a flash to swing that over deep backward square leg

16.4
3
Jayasuriya to Imad Wasim, 3 runs

down the track comes Imad, meets it on the full, slaps it over the top towards deep cover, who misfields and permits them to run the second run easier than it intially seemed

16.3
1
Jayasuriya to Anwar Ali, 1 run

yorker now, dug out through backward square leg

16.2
6
Jayasuriya to Anwar Ali, SIX runs

flat, angled across Anwar, and that is powerful. It was a length ball, and it was pitched outside off, and though it was quick, that gave him the swinging room to get down on one knee and slog-sweep over deep midwicket

16.1
1
Jayasuriya to Imad Wasim, 1 run

flat and full on off stump, driven down the ground, to the right of long-on

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