Pathum Nissanka’s double century (210* off 139), the first by a Sri Lankan in ODIs, conjoined with a four-wicket haul from Pramod Madushan guided Sri Lanka to a 42-run win over Afghanistan in the first game of the three-match ODI series in Pallekele on Friday.
The duo’s dazzling efforts eclipsed fine tons from Mohammad Nabi (136 off 130) and Azmatullah Omarzai (149* off 115) who had shared a 242-run stand to keep the tourists in the hunt after they had been reduced to 55/5 inside the first ten overs. Unfortunately, the target of 382 proved out of reach, which was bound to be the case after the kind of start they endured.
Sri Lanka’s spinners Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana also bowled tidily even though they didn’t have any wickets to show for it.
Brief scores: Sri Lanka 381/4 in 50 overs (Pathum Nissanka 210*, Avishka Fernando 88; Fareed Ahmad 2-79) beat Afghanistan 339/6 in 50 overs (Azmatullah Omarzai 149*, Mohammad Nabi 136; Pramod Madushan 4-75) by 42 runs
Sri Lanka's first ODI double ton 💯💯
Highest ODI score by a Sri Lankan 👑
Breaking Jayasuriya's 24-year old record 💪
Pathum Nissanka, take a bow 🫡
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.#SLvAFG pic.twitter.com/iIzN7ggw3p— FanCode (@FanCode) February 9, 2024
