HAMBANTOTA: Pakistan bowlers put on a dominant show and bundled Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) President XI for a meagre 196-run total despite Oshada Fernando’s century.

Put into bat first, the SLC President XI struggled against the ruthless Pakistan bowling attack and could only pile a modest 196 runs on the scoreboard. Opening batter Oshada Fernando waged a lone battle for Sri Lanka with a gutsy century and played a marathon fighting knock. The right-handed batter smashed 14 boundaries on his way to a 128-ball 109 before young pacer Aamer Jamal got rid of him. Besides Fernando, no other SLC President XI batter could make a notable contribution. Kamindu Mendis (22) was the second top-scorer for the side while six of their batters failed to make it into the double figures.

Pacers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali led the bowling attack for Pakistan with three wickets each while Aamer Jamal and Abrar Ahmed bagged two each.

The two-day tour match will serve as an opportunity for Pakistan to get used to the Sri Lankan conditions and is currently underway at the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium. Following the conclusion of the tour match, Pakistan will take on Sri Lanka in a two-match Test series, their first assignment in the newly-started World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 cycle. The first Test of the series will take place from July 16 to 20 at Galle International Cricket Stadium while the second Test will be held from July 24 to 28 in Colombo. The national contingent, which flew off from Karachi on Saturday night, reached Colombo on Sunday via Dubai. Former South Africa pacer and current Pakistan men’s team’s bowling coach Morne Morkel had also joined the squad in Dubai.

Notably, the former speedster was unable to join the team’s training camp in Karachi due to visa issues. Pakistan squad: Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan, Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Afridi and Shan Masood.

SLC President XI Squad: Niroshan Dickwella (WK), Oshada Fernando, Sandun Weerakkody, Kamindu Mendis – Captain, Ahan Wickremasinghe, Nipun Dhananjaya, Nuwanidu Fernando, Lakshitha Marnasinghe, Praveen Jayawickrama, Shashika Dulshan, Kavishka Anjula, Milan Ratnayake, Asanka Manoj, Mohammed Shiraz.

Published in The Daily National Courier, July, 12 2023

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