By Mohsin Ali
ISLAMABAD: Unbeaten Pakistan will take on Sri Lanka in the fifth match of the ODI tri-series at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Tuesday, 27 October.
Pakistan have played three matches in the tri-series so far — two against England and one against Sri Lanka — and have won all three. The hosts have already qualified for the final, which is scheduled to be played at Gaddafi Stadium on Saturday, 31 October.
In their previous meeting with Sri Lanka in the tournament, Pakistan recorded a 37-run victory on the back of Salman Ali Agha’s 107 off 90 balls, an innings that included nine fours and a six. With the ball, captain Shaheen Shah Afridi led from the front by taking three wickets.
Shaheen, who has taken seven wickets in three matches in the tournament, became the fastest Pakistan pacer to reach 150 ODI wickets when he dismissed Tom Banton in the first over of Sunday’s match against England.
The left-arm fast bowler has also enjoyed an impressive record at Gaddafi Stadium, taking 20 wickets in seven ODIs at the venue, including two four-wicket hauls. He needs four more wickets to become the leading wicket-taker in ODIs at the ground, surpassing former Pakistan fast bowler Wasim Akram’s tally of 23 wickets in 18 matches.
Tuesday’s fixture will be the 162nd ODI between Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Of the previous 161 matches, Pakistan have won 97, while Sri Lanka have won 59. One match ended in a tie and four produced no result.
On Sunday evening, Pakistan secured a thrilling one-wicket win over England, powered by a maiden ODI century from Shadab Khan, who remained unbeaten on 113 off 96 balls with 13 fours and five sixes. Shadab shared an unbroken record 89-run stand for the 10th wicket with Haris Rauf, who scored 7 not out off 19 balls with one four, to guide Pakistan to a memorable victory.
Following the win, Shadab and Haris spoke to PCB Digital about their match-winning partnership and the belief that helped Pakistan seal the contest.
“There was obviously a lot of pressure, but we kept encouraging each other and tried to keep the atmosphere light. As a senior player, the backing and confidence of the team management and selectors mean a great deal. I am grateful that they continued to believe in me and I was able to repay that faith,” Shadab Khan said.
Haris Rauf said he believed from the start that Pakistan could win the match.
“I had belief right from the beginning that we could win the match. I kept telling Shadab to have faith and remain confident. Towards the end, I told him that I would finish the match myself and thankfully, we were able to get Pakistan over the line,” Haris said.
“We managed to secure a memorable win for Pakistan. Winning such a closely contested match is a special feeling and we are delighted to have brought happiness to the people of Pakistan,” he added.
Updated Pakistan squad for tri-series: Shaheen Shah Afridi (c), Abrar Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Maaz Sadaqat, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Haris Rauf, Hasan Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Razaullah, Saad Baig (wk), Sahibzada Farhan and Shadab Khan.
