After a 119-run partnership between Pavan Rathnayake and Janith Liyanage in the One-Day International tri-series opener against Pakistan, just 53 runs separated them from an incredible start. Pakistan’s pacers were also denied the opportunity to generate reverse swing from the old ball due to the dew that made the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium outfield extremely slick on Sunday night.
Agha led Pakistan to 305 runs with 107 off 90 balls, including 10 fours and a six. Pavan Rathnayake and Janith Liyanage scored half-centuries for Sri Lanka in response, but Pakistan’s pacers’ timely wickets limited Sri Lanka to 268 all out in 48.1 overs.
Pakistan, who had earlier scored 305 thanks to Salman Ali Agha’s third ODI century, won by 37 runs after Naseem Shah caught Sachindu Colombage behind, Eshan Malinga was run out following a mix-up, and Haris cleaned out Asitha Fernando. With a calm 107 from 90 balls, including ten fours and a six, Salman celebrated his return to the Pakistani team following his abrupt dismissal from the Test squad two months prior.
However, Sri Lanka’s bowlers concluded Pakistan’s innings with a flourish, claiming five wickets in the final five overs while conceding just 36 runs. Leading the charge with figures of 4-46 was Eshan Malinga. Babar Azam, the captain of Pakistan, hit the milestone of 16,000 international runs with 45 runs off 57 balls, including six fours. Babar has scored 16,038 runs at an average of 45.30 in 399 innings since making his debut in 2015, including 32 hundreds and 111 fifties. 196 is his highest score.
In terms of total international runs, he is ranked fifth among Pakistani batters, behind Javed Miandad, Younis Khan, Mohammed Yousuf, and Inzamam-ul-Haq. Babar has performed exceptionally well in One Day Internationals (ODIs), amassing 6,671 runs at an average of 53.36 in 141 innings, including 20 hundreds, 38 fifties, and a maximum score of 158.
