Pakistan Shaheens faced a seven-wicket defeat to Sri Lanka as the Men in Green failed to defend 136 in the T20 Asia Cup semi-final on Friday.
Lahiru Udara and Ahan Wickramasinghe stitched 64 runs together to set the tone for Sri Lanka during the chase.
Udara made 43 off 20 balls to leave a strong impression there. However, Ahan, who was upgraded in batting today, remained out of his exceptional 52 which came with four boundaries and a six.
The fourth wicket partnership between Ahan and Sahan Arachchige made the chase look very comfortable. The two batsmen scored 32 runs together. Sahan managed to score 17 points.
For Shaheens, both Sufyan Muqim and Abbas Afridi got a wicket each.
Earlier, Shaheens set a target of 136 for Sri Lanka A to chase down in 20 overs.
Except for Amir Ben Youssef, no other batsman from Shaheen was able to contribute well to the team. Mohammed Haris’ side continued to lose wickets after regular intervals.
Umair’s 68 off 46 helped Shaheens to 135-9. The batting collapse put Sahin in real trouble.
Other players, including skipper Mohammad Haris (6), Qasim Akram (0), Haider Ali (14), Arafat Minhas (10), Abdul Samad (0), Abbas Afridi (9), and Mohammad Imran (13), did not participate. He is able to score a lot for the team.
Dushan Hemantha has taken the most wickets for Sri Lanka. Nipun Ransika and Eshan Malinga both got a wicket.
Earlier, Pakistan Shaheens chose to bat first against Sri Lanka A on Friday in Al Amerat.
Playing eleven
Pakistan Shaheen: Umair Yousuf, Yasir Khan, Muhammad Haris (c), Qasim Akram, Haider Ali, Abdul Samad, Arafat Minhas, Sufyan Muqim, Abbas Afridi, Shahnawaz Dhani, and Muhammad Imran.
Sri Lanka A: Yashoda Lanka, Lahiru Udara, Nwanidu Fernando (c), Sahan Arashchigi, Pavan Rathnayake, Ramesh Mendis, Ahan Wickramasinghe, Dushan Hemantha, Nimesh Vimukthi, Nipun Ransika, and Ishan Malinga.