Misbah guides Pakistan to victory

xIn front of a packed house, Misbah made an unbeaten 48 from 38 balls with three boundaries and a six to take them home with five wickets and three balls remaining after quick Aizaz Cheema had snapped up four wickets earlier to restrict Sri Lanka to 141.

It was close going into the last two overs but the man everyone loves to watch in this part of the region—Shahid Afridi— played a neat came of 22 from 15 balls with two sixes to tilt it in their favour. And then, Misbah and Shoaib Malik got them past the line.

It capped a perfect tour for Misbah’s men, who won the Test series 1-0 and the One-Day International segment 4-1. The Twenty20 win on the night also halted Sri Lanka’s run of five successive wins.

Pakistan made two changes to the team that featured in the fifth and final One-Day International. Aizaz Cheema came in for the injured left-arm quick Junaid Khan. Opener Imran Farhat replaced Younis Khan, who has retired from the shortest format of the game.

Sri Lanka, who have had a tour to forget, losing the Test series 0-1 and the One-Day International series 1-4, also made two changes to their team. Spinner Ajantha Mendis replaced Seekkugge Prasanna, while all-rounder Dilruwamn Perera came in for Jeevan Mendis.

Earlier, opting to bat, Sri Lanka squandered a strong start to finish up at 141 with three balls to spare.

Openers left-hander Upul Tharanga and captain Tillakaratne Dilshan put them on the road with 10 runs per over. Dilshan looked like a man on a mission, spanking successive boundaries in the second over of the night. Tanvir fired in one full and wide and Dilshan smacked it past the covers. Tanvir then strayed a slower one onto Dilshan’s legs and the latter timed it well to the square leg boudary.

Then, Tharanga got into the act, picking two boundaries off the next over bowled by Gul. He made room and sent it past square for the first boundary and then sliced a slower one over covers.

But Tharanga’s innings was short-lived after Cheema struck in the second ball of his very first over, having the former’s middle stump rattled. Tharanga’s 12 came from 13 balls with one boundary. Despite the fall of the first wicket, Dilshan and new batsman Dinesh Chandimal counter-attacked. Dilshan lofted Cheema wide of mid-on for a boundary and then Chandimal cut a short and wide one over point for a boundary.

Chandimal then lofted Tanvir to the long-off boundary. Dilshan looked in the zone and in for a good score when he welcomed off-spinner Saeed Ajmal by dancing down and lofting it wide of mid-off for a boundary. But he was out the next ball, top-edging it and his opposite number Misbah-ul-Haq held onto it at short mid-wicket. Dilshan quickfire 28 came from 15 balls with four boundaries.

Chandimal then sent Mohammed Hafeez over extra cover for a boundary before Sri Lanka lost their third wicket, that of their most impressive batsman on the tour—Kumar Sangakkara. The ball stopped on Sangakkara and he chipped it straight back to bowler Hafeez.

james@khaleejtimes.com