There was great excitement in the first ODI between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan on Friday. Thanks to opener Pathum Nissanka’s powerful double century, Sri Lanka had scored 381 runs for three wickets in 50 overs after the first game. In response, Afghanistan lost five crucial wickets for just 55 runs, but then Azmatullah Omarzai and Mohammad Nabi made history.
There was a 242-run partnership between Omarzai and Nabi for the sixth wicket. Both scored centuries. Umarzai returned unbeaten after scoring 149 runs. While Nabi played an innings of 136 runs. However, the Afghan team failed to achieve the target and Sri Lanka won the first ODI by 42 runs.
Sri Lanka, who came to bat first, got off to a very good start. Pathum Nissanka and Avishka Fernando formed a partnership of 182 runs in 26.2 overs for the first wicket. Avishka Fernando returned to the pavilion after scoring 88 runs in 88 balls with the help of 8 fours and 3 sixes. After that, captain Kusal Mendis could only score 16 runs in 31 balls. However, Nissanka’s thugs from the other side didn’t stop him.
Sadira Samarawickrama also supported Nissanka well. He scored 45 runs in 36 balls with 4 fours and a six. Meanwhile, Nissanka returned unbeaten after scoring 210 runs in 139 balls with 20 fours and 8 sixes. Along with him, Charith Asalanka also returned unbeaten for seven runs. In this way, Sri Lanka posted a mountain-like score of 381 runs for three wickets in 50 overs.
After that, Afghanistan’s start to chasing the target of 382 runs was nothing less than a nightmare. With a total score of five, the team got their first blow in the second round. Opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz could only score one run. After that, the Afghan batsmen kept performing with the motto “Tu chal main aaya”. Ibrahim Zadran was eliminated with 04 points, Rahmat Shah with seven points, Hashmatullah Shahidi with seven points and Gulbadin Naib with 16 points.
After the fall of five wickets for 55 runs, a record partnership of 242 runs was formed for the sixth wicket between Mohammad Nabi and Azmatullah Omarzai. Umarzai scored an unbeaten 149 runs in 115 balls with the help of 13 fours and 6 sixes. While Mohammad Nabi played an innings of 136 runs in 130 balls with 15 fours and 3 sixes. However, the Afghan team still managed to score only 339 runs in the stipulated overs, falling 42 runs short of the target.