Pakistan comprehensively defeated a below-par Sri Lankan outfit by 7 wickets in their first T20I match on Thursday night in Abu Dhabi.
Pakistan lead the three-match series, 1-0 with the second game scheduled on Friday at the same venue.
Pakistan bowlers, all six of them, were among the wickets while Hasan Ali took career best figures of 3 for 23 in T20I cricket as the visitors slumped to 102 all out in the 19th over, losing the last 8 wickets for just 51 runs.
Only 4 Sri Lankan batsmen went past the double-figure mark with debutant Sadeera Samarawickrama stroking a crisp 23-ball 23 and Seekkuge Prasanna chipping in with an unbeaten 23.
Pakistan lost two quick wickets early as fast-bowler Vikum Sanjaya and left-arm spinner Sachith Pathirana troubled the hosts but the experience of Shoaib Malik and Mohammed Hafeez prevailed as they chased down the target convincingly with more than 2 overs to spare.
Malik slammed 4 fours during his 31-ball unbeaten 42 while Hafeez kept his calm to score 25 in 23 deliveries as Pakistan continued their dominance over Sri Lanka in limited-overs cricket this tour.
Earlier, Pakistan won the toss and elected to field as they made only one change to their side which played the 5th ODI while Sri Lanka made as much as 8 changes with Thisara Perera, Sri Lanka’s 7th captain across all formats this year and 9th T20I captain in the shortest format being the most experienced player.
Sri Lanka – 102 all out in 18.4 overs: Sadeera Samarawickrama 23, Seekkuge Prasanna 23*, Hasan Ali 3/23, Usman Khan Shenwari 2/20, Mohammed Hafeez 2/10,
Pakistan – 103/3 in 17.2 overs: Ahmed Shehzad 22, Shoaib Malik 42*, Mohammed Hafeez 25*, Vikum Sanjaya 2/20.
