Shadab propels Pak to 6-wicket win over SL
Allrounder Shadab Khan staked his claim for a spot at next month’s T20 World Cup with 2-25 in his return from a shoulder injury for Pakistan in a six-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the first T20 on Wednesday. Shadab got the wickets of Kusal Mendis and Dhananjaya de Silva in his first over before Sri Lanka collapsed to 128 all out in 19.2 overs after losing the toss. Sahibzada Farhan then smacked 51 off 36 balls and Shadab made an unbeaten 18 off 12 balls as Pakistan cruised to 129-4 with 20 balls to spare.
Shadab had last played an international game in June before undergoing surgery on his right shoulder. “Comebacks in internationals are tough because you start from zero,” said Shadab, who was named player of the match. “The surface was helping definitely, but in cricket you have to always assess the conditions. Here, fuller (balls) were better than good length.”
The three-match series continues in Dambulla on Friday and Sunday and will serve as a tuneup for the T20 World Cup. Pakistan is due to play all its World Cup games in Sri Lanka and is yet to announce its squad for the event. Sri Lanka struggled to get momentum against Pakistan second-string fast bowlers after the Pakistan Cricket Board had allowed Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf to skip the series and play in the Big Bash League in Australia.
Leftarm fast bowler Salman Mirza (3-18) had Kamil Mishara caught at mid-on for a three-ball duck and Pathum Nissanka struggled to score run-a-ball 12 before pulling Mohammad Wasim’s (2-7) short ball and got caught at deep square leg inside the power play. Shadab made an immediate impact in his first over when he trapped Mendis lbw of a fuller delivery and then de Silva, returning to T20 format after June 2024, got caught behind for 10 of an inside edge as Sri Lanka slipped to 38-4 in the seventh over. Janith Liyanage (40) was the only home team batter to cross the 20-run mark, but he got a lucky escape on 4 when Farhan dropped a sitter at long-on that could have given Shadab his third wicket.
