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Pak seal the
Warid Cricket Series in Abu Dhabi 2-0 |
May 20, 2007 (Link to
Scorecard)
Pakistan have clinched the Warid Cricket
Series in Abu Dhabi by winning the
second ODI by 98 runs. Sri Lanka fell
apart chasing a huge target of 314 under
lights. Once again the hero for Pakistan
was Shahid Afridi, this time with the
ball as he took three crucial wickets.
Salman Butt continued his efforts of
cementing a place in the side with a
polished 74 from 81 with 11 boundaries.
He was rewarded with the Man of the
Match award.
Shoaib Malik won the toss in this game and
decided to bat first. Imran Nazir gave a blazing
start but his innings was only a cameo of 17
from 14. Yasir Hameed, the no.3 bat got a big
partnership of 98 with Salman Butt which got the
platform for a big total. Yasir Hameed made 50
from 53 with 7 fours. The wickets of Hameed and
Butt were taken by leg spinner Malinga Bandara.
Skipper Shoaib Malik chipped in with 27 from 19
while Kamran Akmal got 38 from 46. Last match
hero with the bat, Shahid Afridi flopped,
getting out to Maharoof for just 1. The
finishing act surprisingly came from Mohammad
Sami, who had got 22 from 12 with 3 fours and a
six. Pakistan got 313 for 9. Maharoof and
Bandara picked up three wickets each.
In the absence of Sanath Jayasuriya, Chamara
Kapugedera was asked to open the innings with
Tharanga. Kapugedera gave the ideal start but
perished too early like Imran Nazir. Kapugedera
got 20 from 16. Debutant Malinda Warnapura
couldn't get going as he was trapped leg before
by Mohammad Asif. Shahid Afridi gave Pakistan a
couple of big wickets removing the two set
batsmen Tharanga (48 from 57 with 9 fours) and
Chamara Silva (21). Both these batsmen were
engaged in meaningful partnerships with their
skipper Mahela Jayawardene, who fell in the 36th
over. That was literally the end of the fight
for the Lankans. Mahela was lbw to Asif having
made 61 from 69 with 6 fours and a six. Sri
Lanka got bundled out for 215 in 39.5 overs.
Shahid Afridi was outstanding with the ball. He
pulled the run rate down with economical figures
of 3 for 37 in 10 overs. Asif was expensive but
got two vital wickets giving away 59 in his 10.
The target for Sri Lanka was Umar Gul who went
for 38 in 3.5 overs.
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