KANDY: Sri Lanka grabbed a win against Afghanistan by 4 wickets to level the series one all. Wellalage batted brilliantly with Asalanka firing sixers in the last over to take Sri Lanka home to a fantastic record win chasin
Afghanistan batting first scored a massive 313 runs in 50 overs for the loss of 8 wickets. Young Ibrahim Zadran displayed his brilliance once again by scoring a brilliant 162 runs off 138 balls while Najibullah Zadran hit 77 runs off 76 balls. Newly wed Kasun Rajitha picked up 3 wickets giving away 60 runs while Hasaranga picked up 2 wickets. Sri Lankan bowling attack didn’t seem to bother the Afghans much as they piled up the runs.
Sri Lanka openers set the tone for a good chase with an opening partnership of 101 with Kusal Mendis contributing 67 runs. Few quick wickets of Nissanka and De Silva put Sri Lanka in the back foot. Charith Asalanka batted brilliantly along with Captain Shanaka to steady the chase. Shanaka fell for 43 runs. Asalanka fought on with 83 off 72 balls. Rashid Khan picked up 4 wickets for Afghanistan. Sri Lanka needed 26 runs in the last 2 overs with 4 wickets in hand and Wellalage supported Asalanka with a cameo of 31 off 21 balls to reach the target with a 65 run partnership for the 7th wicket. Sri Lanka reached 314 for 6 wickets with 2 balls to spare. (RZ) Image credit ESPN cric inf
