The Pakistan cricket team is leading the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka by 1-0 as they recorded a victory in the first match by four wickets. They are expected to cause a whitewash when they will lock horns with the island nation for the second Test match from Monday to Friday at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo.
Babar Azam & Men will be buzzing with confidence on Monday as they delivered a comprehensive performance in the first Test and excelled in all facets of the game be it batting, bowling, or fielding.
While the middle-order batters were successful in establishing their domination, the team must be disappointed with the performance of their skipper and the opening batters Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq. They will be hoping for the three players to get back in form and unleash their full potential on the 22-yard pitch. As far as the Pakistan bowlers are concerned, they looked in great shape.
Speaking of the Sri Lankan cricket team, they need to put more focus on their batting. The top five batters let the team down and can be one of the major reasons behind the hosts losing the second Test match as well. Meanwhile, the bowlers also need to bring their A-game to the fore to avoid a series loss and end the two-match Test series in a draw.
What has happened so far?
The first Test match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka at the Galle International Stadium in Galle witnessed the home skipper Dimuth Karunaratne winning the toss and opting to bat first. It was a fruitful decision as the hosts managed to put up a decent score of 312 runs after batting for 95.2 overs.
Dhananjaya de Silva top-scored for his team with a knock of 122 runs off 214 balls including 12 boundaries and three maximums. For Pakistan, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Abrar Ahmed picked three wickets each.
In the second innings, Pakistan outshined Sri Lanka by smacking 461 runs off 121.2 overs. Saud Shakeel was the hero of the innings for his knock of 208 runs while for Sri Lanka, Ramesh Mendis grabbed the limelight for picking five wickets.
The Sri Lankans were expected to come up with a sensational performance in their third batting innings but they fell flat against Pakistan’s decorated bowling and scored only 279 runs. Silva was the only positive for his team with a knock of 82 runs while for the visitors Abrar and Noman Ali picked three wickets each.
Pakistan had to score only 131 runs in the final innings to reach the winning line and they did so in 32.5 overs only. Sri Lankan bowlers could not give a tough fight as Imam-ul-Haq slammed a much-needed fifty. With the visitors winning the Test by four wickets, Saud Shakeel won the Player of the Match award for his double century.
Head to Head Record
Pakistan is leading the head-to-head records against Sri Lanka in the Test format
Pakistan and Sri Lanka have gone one-on-one against each other a total of 58 times in the longest format of the game since the commencement of the gentlemen’s game. The Green Army has enjoyed domination over the island nation over the years with 22 victories under their belt.
Sri Lanka has won only 17 matches while as many as 19 games between the two sides ended in a draw.
Key Players
Ramesh Mendis (Sri Lanka): The surface at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo will be more appropriate for the spinners to make a difference. Thus, the right-arm off-break bowler Ramesh Mendis will be the most vital player for the Sri Lankan team. The pressure will be on the hosts while playing the second Test as they have already faced a defeat in the opening match of the two-match series.
Mendis was the star performer for the team in the first Test as he picked up a total of five wickets during Pakistan’s first batting innings. After bowling for a whopping 42.2 overs, the spinner managed to maintain an economy rate of 5. During the final innings of the match, Mendis picked up only one wicket in the form of Saud Shakeel while conceding 62 runs in his 14 overs.
Saud Shakeel (Pakistan): Saud Shakeel took home the Player of the Match award in the first Test match against Sri Lanka as Pakistan recorded a win by four wickets. While following a score of 312 runs in their first batting innings, the visitors posted 461 runs on the scoreboard, and the entire credit for the same goes to Shakeel. Batting at number five, he played a marvellous knock of 208 runs off 361 balls.
Shakeel failed to make the same impact in the last innings as he was dismissed by Ramesh Mendis after facing 38 balls and scoring 30 runs. The 27-year-old is likely to continue the good performance in the second Test as well. He is also backed by his stunning international record of 818 runs from six Test matches.
Predicted XIs
Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Shan Masood, Babar Azam ©, Saud Shakeel, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Agha Salman, Noman Ali, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Abrar Ahmed
Sri Lanka: Nishan Madushka, Dimuth Karunaratne ©, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya de Silva, Sadeera Samarawickrama (wk), Ramesh Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Kasun Rajitha, Dilshan Madushanka
Prediction
The Pakistan cricket team is likely to win the final Test of the two-match series against Sri Lanka to record a stunning win by 2-0. The visitors looked good in the first match as they dished out an all-round performance to secure a victory by four wickets. A similar performance is expected from the team in the Test match starting on Monday.
Having said that, Sri Lanka can also give a tough fight to the visiting nation to level the series. The pitch at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo is known to favor the spinners more and the island nation has good spinners in the team.