Sri Lanka extend series lead

Pakistan batting crumples once again

Last updated: 1st August 2009   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Sri Lanka extend series lead

Thushara: Three wickets

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Second One Day International, Dambulla
Pakistan 168 (T Thushara 3-33) v Sri Lanka 169-4 (C K Kapugedera 67 no)
Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by 6 wkts

Sri Lanka took a 2-0 lead in their one-day series with Pakistan after a comfortable victory in Dambulla.

The tourists were dismissed for a meagre total of 168 and were powerless to prevent Sri Lanka from reaching the required target with over six overs remaining.

Chamara Kapugedera hit an unbeaten 67 as the hosts closed out the win for the loss of only four wickets.

Thilan Samaraweera ably supported the 22-year-old as the two batsmen put on a fifth-wicket stand of 95 after the top-order had faltered.

Pakistan, who again failed to perform with the bat, hit back during the Sri Lanka innings with three early wickets.

Opener Upul Tharanga fell cheaply again, and captain Kumar Sangakkara and Sanath Jayasuriya were both dismissed in the space of three balls to give the visitors a glimmer of hope.

Distraction

Sangakkara was run out following a mix-up with Jayasuriya after the captain was sent back by the veteran batsman when already half way down the pitch.

A distracted Jayasuriya then threw his wicket away as he holed out to Umar Akmal in the deep.

Mahela Jayawardene and Kapugedera then steadied the ship until the former pulled a short ball from Shahid Afridi straight to Younus Khan at short midwicket.

That wicket brought Samaraweera, playing only his second one-dayer after a four-year absence, to the crease.

He and Kapugedera batted sensibly, the latter eventually reaching his sixth one-day half-century with a square-driven boundary off Umar Gul and then completed the victory with consecutive fours off Mohammad Aamir.

Collapse

Earlier, fast bowler Thilan Thushara had sparked another Pakistan collapse by taking three quick-fire wickets.

Debutant opener Nasir Jamshed fell first ball to Nuwan Kulasekara, then left-armer Thushara claimed the wickets of Kamran Akmal, Shoaib Malik and Fawad Alam as Pakistan's batting crumbled again.

Muttiah Muralitharan made further inroads by dismissing dangermen Younus and Afridi, and although the bottom order provided some resistance, Pakistan were unable to set a testing target.

Younus and Umar briefly revived the innings but the captain was dismissed after a very slow 23 from 73 deliveries when he chipped a catch to midwicket off Thushara.

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