Pakistan maintains its unbeaten record against Sri Lanka in World Cup matches, extending it to 8-0. Additionally, this victory marks the highest successful run-chase in the history of the World Cup.
On a favorable batting pitch, Sri Lanka posted a total of 344 runs, thanks to centuries from Kusal Mendis and Sadeera Samarawickrama. Mendis benefited from a couple of chances and capitalized on them significantly. Although Mendis’ performance overshadowed Samarawickrama’s, the Sri Lankan No. 4 elegantly compiled his first century in ODIs.
Pakistan managed to regain some control towards the end of the innings, but they still faced a substantial target. In their reply, Pakistan lost two wickets in the initial powerplay, both falling to Dilshan Madushanka. While Imam was dismissed for 12 with a short-pitched delivery, Captain Babar Azam was caught out for 10 runs. This put Pakistan in a challenging position, but they fought back impressively.
Abdullah Shafique and Rizwan displayed fluent batting performances and each scored a century, which proved crucial in Pakistan’s successful pursuit of a massive total.
Mohammad Rizwan was declared player of the match.
Earlier, Sri Lanka’s captain, Dasun Shanaka, won the toss at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium and chose to bat first. Pakistan got off to a strong start when Hasan Ali took an early wicket in the second over, dismissing opener Kusal Perera without scoring.
Nonetheless, centuries from Kusal Mendis and Sadeera Samarawickrama propelled Sri Lanka to a total of 344/9 against Pakistan. Their centuries, along with a fifty from Pathum Nissanka, comfortably pushed Sri Lanka past the 300-run mark. However, a late resurgence from Hasan Ali, who claimed 4/71, and Haris Rauf’s two wickets in the final over prevented Sri Lanka from reaching the 350-run milestone.
Mendis and Nissanka formed an impressive partnership, accumulating 102 runs for Sri Lanka’s second wicket until Shadab Khan finally made a breakthrough. Nissanka was the one who was dismissed after scoring 51, giving Pakistan the crucial breakthrough. However, Mendis continued to excel and reached his third ODI century in just 65 balls.
He eventually departed after scoring 122 off 77 balls, providing Pakistan with some relief as Hasan Ali took two consecutive wickets. However, Pakistan’s challenges were far from over. Samarawickrama stood his ground firmly on his way to scoring his first ODI century. Even though Pakistan managed to take wickets in the last 10 overs, Sri Lanka’s initial assault was so effective that they still came close to reaching the 350-run mark.
Subsequently, the partnership between Nissanka and Mendis turned into a flurry of boundaries. Shaheen Afridi seemed to have difficulties with his bowling rhythm, and Pakistan’s problems worsened when Imam-ul-Haq dropped what appeared to be a straightforward catch at backward point. Sri Lanka made a single change to their lineup, bringing in Maheesh Theekshana in place of Kasun Rajitha. Meanwhile, Pakistan made a significant change by dropping the out-of-form Fakhar Zaman and bringing Abdullah Shafique on board to open alongside Imam.
