Tag: Pakistan vs Sri Lanka Tests

Right-arm speedster Hasan Ali was “so happy” to retain his spot in the Pakistan Test squad, unveiled by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Saturday, for the two-match series against Sri Lanka.

Taking to Twitter, Hasan Ali expressed his gratitude for his inclusion in the national Test team for the Sri Lanka Tests before vowing to give his best in the away series.

“Shukar Alhamdulilah!! So happy to be back in Pakistan Test team for Sri Lanka series. Looking forward to give my 100% and start the WTC 2023-25 campaign with new goals,” he wrote.

Shukar Alhamdulilah!! So happy to be back in Pakistan Test team for Sri Lanka series.
Looking forward to give my 100% and start the WTC 2023-25 campaign with new goals 🇵🇰🏏 #32#IamGAME #PAKvSL #PakistanZindabad

— Hassan Ali 🇵🇰 (@RealHa55an) June 17, 2023

Notably, Hasan Ali was also a part of Pakistan’s squad for the two-match home series against New Zealand last year.

He played the second Test but could only manage to pick one wicket in the match.

Following his struggling patch, he could not make it to Pakistan’s white-ball squad for the Afghanistan and New Zealand series.

He last featured for Pakistan in the limited-over formats in September 2022 in the Asia Cup final against Sri Lanka.

However, it was Hasan Ali’s brilliant campaign in the ongoing County Championship that bolstered him to retain himself in the Test squad.

The right-arm pacer took 22 wickets in four matches and is currently the 11th leading wicket-taker of the competition.

It is worth mentioning here that Pakistan will start their World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 campaign with an away series against Sri Lanka, which is likely to commence on July 16.

As per the ICC-released WTC schedule, Pakistan will play 14 matches against numerous teams over the course of a two-year period.

The Green Shirts will play six series – three home and three away – during their WTC campaign.

Pakistan will take on England, West Indies and Bangladesh in their own backyard while they will face some serious challenges in the away series against reigning champions Australia and South Africa.

Pakistan squad

Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (vc & wk), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Afridi and Shan Masood

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GALLE: Sri Lanka finished the opening day of the first Test in a relatively comfortable position as their bowlers restrict Pakistan on 24/2 after the batters could only muster 222 in the first inning.

Pakistan, in response to Sri Lanka’s 222, finished the opening day at 24/2 after Prabath Jayasuriya and Kasun Rajitha removed both openers – Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq – in quick successions for a skimpy 13 and two respectively.

Following the early hiccup, Pakistan captain Babar Azam (1*) and veteran right-handed batter Azhar Ali (3*) will now resume the proceedings for the touring side with a deficit of 198 runs.

Batting first, Sri Lanka could only manage to pose 222 runs on the board despite a valiant half-century from their in-form batter Chandimal as the rest of the batters remained unable to contribute significantly to the total.

The right-handed batter top-scored for the side with 76 off 115 balls in the course of his fighting knock, laced with 10 boundaries and a six.

Besides Chandimal, Sri Lanka’s right-arm pacer Maheesh Theekshana remained the significant contributor as he scored important 38 runs down the order and bolstered the home side to a commendable total.

For Pakistan, Shaheen led the way with four wickets, while Yasir Shah and Hasan Ali bagged two each. Mohammad Nawaz, and Naseem Shah, on the other hand, struck out a batter each.

Sri Lanka, after resuming their first innings at 166/8 in the final session of the opening day, added 56 runs for the remaining two wickets as Theekshana displayed brilliance after Chandimal’s dismissal and added quick runs at the death.

The touring side earlier enjoyed a delightful second session as the hosts could only add 86 runs at the cost of four wickets at the back of a gritty unbeaten knock of Chandimal.

Resuming their score at 80/4 after Lunch, Sri Lanka soon lost half of their side on a combined score of 99 as Shaheen claimed his second wicket by removing Dhananjaya de Silva for 14.

Wicket-keeper batter Niroshan Dickwella’s stay at the crease, also remained brief as the left-arm pacer struck again to provide Pakistan with their sixth breakthrough.

Chandimal and Ramesh Mendis then attempted to anchor the proceedings for Sri Lanka as they added an important 27 runs for the seventh wicket before right-arm speedster Naseem struck his first by removing the latter on 11.

All-rounder Nawaz then further pushed the hosts on the back foot as he removed the tailender Prabath Jayasuriya for four and Sri Lanka, eventually, slipped to 133/8.

Amid the frustrating collapse, right-handed batter Chandimal displayed astounding resilience and kept the scoreboard ticking single-handedly while scoring boundaries at will. He smashed Naseem for three consecutive boundaries in the 45th over to bring up his 22nd Test half-century.

Sri Lanka, after opting to bat first, were off to a poor start as left-arm pacer Shaheen struck in his second over to remove the Sri Lankan captain Dimuth Karunaratne for a mere one.

Following the early hiccup, the hosts marched towards recovery with a gritty 49-run partnership for the second wicket as opener Oshada Fernando and Kusal Mendis batted sensibly and anchored the innings.

The duo appeared settled and was ticking the scoreboard comfortably, till the 15th over before the returning leg-spinner Yasir removed Mendis for 21. He faced 35 deliveries and smashed three boundaries. Following his departure, the hosts slipped to 60/2.

Pakistan pacer Hasan then added to the misery of the home side as he struck out Fernando in the next over, who remained the top-scorer for Sri Lanka thus far with 35 runs off 49 deliveries.

With the side struggling at 60/3, the veteran Sri Lankan batter Angelo Mathews looked to settle things down and took on a defensive approach, only for bagging a 15-ball-duck to Yasir.

Following Mathews’s dismissal, the home side were in all sorts of trouble at 68/4 in the 21st over. Sri Lanka’s hero for the second Test against Australia, Dinesh Chandimal and Dhananjaya de Silva then carried their way till lunch as they added 12 runs for the fifth wicket to help Sri Lanka finish at 80/4.

READ: Sri Lanka win toss, elect to bat first against Pakistan in first Test

GALLE: Sri Lanka have won the toss and elected to bat first in the first Test of the two-match series against Sri Lanka, here at Galle International Stadium.

PLAYING XIs

Sri Lanka: Dimuth Karunaratne (c), Oshada Fernando, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dinesh Chandimal, Niroshan Dickwella (wk), Ramesh Mendis, Maheesh Theekshana, Prabath Jayasuriya, Kasun Rajitha

Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Azhar Ali, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Agha Salman Mohammad Nawaz, Yasir Shah, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah

HEAD TO HEAD

Matches-55, Pakistan-20, Australia-16, Draw-19

RAWALPINDI: Former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed got a major confidence booster ahead of the team’s forthcoming Test tour to Sri Lanka as he scored a half-century in the intra-squad practice match today.

Sarfaraz, who last played a Test for Pakistan in 2019, continued to pile up runs in the practice matches ahead of the Green Shirts’ tour to Sri Lanka for two Tests.

The right-handed batter smashed 51 off 81 balls including six boundaries and a six. He previously scored an unbeaten 41 in the scenario-based intra-squad practice match on Tuesday.

Besides Sarfaraz, Fawad Alam also seemed to have found his form as he scored back-to-back fifties in the practice matches as he scored 53 including five boundaries.

Agha Salman and Mohammad Nawaz, on the other hand, were the other notable run-getters, the former scored an unbeaten 69 off 80 balls including eight boundaries while the latter scored 54.

The skipper Babar Azam could not score big this time around as he could only manage to score 44 runs.

Salman, Nauman Ali, and Nauman were the only bowlers to have opened their accounts as they claimed a wicket apiece.

READ: Netizens irked over Faheem’s exclusion from PCB Central Contracts