Sri Lanka beat Afghanistan by 132 runs
Set a target of 324, the Sri Lankan bowlers bowled out the tourists for 191 in 43 overs to set up their biggest win over Afghanistan in ODIs.
Pacer Dushmantha Chameera returned to the Sri Lankan team with a 132-run win over Afghanistan in Hambantota on Sunday and leveled the three-match one-day international series.
Set a target of 324, the Sri Lankan bowlers bowled out the tourists for 191 in 43 overs to set up their biggest win over Afghanistan in ODIs.
Chameera, returning to the team after a seven-month layoff following ankle surgery, bowled some poor spells and took two wickets for 18 runs.
Sri Lanka will be buoyed by the return of their main strike bowler as they head straight to Zimbabwe after the series to play the World Cup qualifiers.
Captain Dasun Shanaka said, “We are very pleased that Chameera is back: the injury kept him out for a while but I am glad he is firing on all cylinders.”
“Dimuth Karunaratne is also back, and he adds more stability to the batting – and obviously he’s very experienced. These are good signs for the World Cup qualifiers.”
No such problem for Afghanistan, who have already qualified for the World Cup to be held in India later this year.
Chameera was well supported by part-time off-spinner Dhananjaya de Silva, who took three wickets, including the hero of the first match, Ibrahim Zardana.
Leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga took three wickets for 42 runs.
Zardan, who top-scored in the first ODI with 98, was again among the run-scorers with 54.
But the scoreboard pressure got to them as they attempted a cut shot which was taken behind the stumps by Kusal Mendis.
Captain Hashmatullah Shahidi top-scored with 57 before being trapped lbw by De Silva.
After that, there was little resistance from the Afghan batsmen as they lost six wickets for 23 runs.
Shahidi said after the match, “I don’t think it was our best performance, we were a bit loose on the field.”
Sri Lanka came into the game making four changes after losing the first ODI by six wickets on Friday.
Openers Dimuth Karunaratne and Pathum Nissanka put on 82 runs for the first wicket, with Karunaratne scoring 52 off 62 balls in a comeback effort.
After this, Kusal Mendis played a brilliant counter-attack innings of 78 runs in 75 balls with the help of seven fours and a six.
A third-wicket partnership between Mendis and Sadira Samarawickrama, playing her first ODI in more than three years, provided the much-needed momentum to the innings. The pair added 88 runs in 86 balls.
Sri Lanka’s lower middle order was the driving force behind their total of 323, in which the hosts scored 109 runs in the last ten overs.
Fareed Ahmed and Mohammad Nabi took two wickets each for Afghanistan.
The third and final ODI will also be held in Hambantota on June 7.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – AFP,
