TANGIERS-Chasing a modest Sri Lanka total of 242, Pakistan got off to adisastrous start and never recovered
Agha Akbar17-Aug-2002TANGIERS-Chasing a modest Sri Lanka total of 242, Pakistan got off to adisastrous start and never recovered. With Shahid Afridi smitingChaminda Vaas and Pulasthi Gunaratne for three sixes, they avoided theignominy of giving the Lankans a bonus point. But with a bunny likeMohammad Sami at the other end, with only 39 needed off 38 balls, Afridicould only have hit out. That he did, but it didn’t come off.With this 39-run win, their second on the trot, the Lankans were nowsitting pretty at the top, with Sanath Jayasuriya winning his secondsuccessive Man of the Match award, in this instance for a stroke-filled 97.At the same time, Pakistan has been consigned to the bottom at thepoints table. They must beat South Africa on Sunday and then wait forthe result of the last game of this double between Sri Lanka and SouthAfrica to see where they stand.Though there was uneven bounce in the wicket, the target was notawesome. If anything Yousuf Youhana proved with a masterly knock of 80(91 balls, 8 fours, 1 six) under immense pressure, that it was possibleto first graft and then play one’s strokes. It indeed method andorganisation of the upper order which was lacking and that spelt doomfor Pakistan. They didn’t get a good start and, with the exception ofYouhana and Razzaq (70 runs for the fifth wicket stand off 84 balls),never got the partnerships going.The openers, Saeed Anwar and Imran Nazir were gone with just 18 on theboard. Pulsathi Gunaratne accounted for both, but not without some helpfrom the batsmen. Anwar clipped uppishly to Jayawardene at shortsquare-leg and Nazir, after hitting two glorious fours to cover andlong-on, playing a cross-batted stroke towards the on, missed the lineand was clean-bowled.As if that wasn’t bad enough, Inzamam-ul-Haq pulled Vaas and Jayawardenepicked up a low catch to see the entire team running towards him at deepsquare-leg to celebrate. Further catastrophe was in store for Pakistan,as Younis Khan, the in-form batsman capable of tearing any attack apart,got out off a leading edge off Upal Chandana to make it 57 for four.Youhana hung in there, fighting it out with Abdul Razzaq (25, off 48balls, 3 fours). Youhana allowed himself to settle down, as he almostalways does, before unleashing an array of dazzling strokes all roundthe park. Jayasuriya came on for just one over, and was clouted byYouhana for 15 runs: a six over long-on, then fours over at square-legand long-on to post Pakistan’s 100, and his individual 50 simultaneously.But the Lankans wrested control as Razzaq playing too far back wastrapped leg before by Muralitharan and Youhana got the bottom edge on adrive, with Sangakkara doing the rest.Akram (19, 24 balls) and Rashid (3) couldn’t make the neededcontribution. And Shahid Afridi was sent too late at No 9. He stilltried, but it was a case of too little, too late.Lankans lose momentum:
At two points in the match Sri Lanka was going strong. At both, it losta wicket through a needless run out. These breakthroughs resulted inmore wickets in quick order, and loss of momentum. And that was whydespite a highly entertaining knock of 97 off just 94 deliveries bySanath Jayasuriya, the Lankans were bowled out for 242, the lowest totalbatting first in this tournament so far.First it was Sanath Jayasuriya (97, off 94 deliveries, 12 fours, 1 six)and Marwan Atapattu (16, off 22 balls, 3 fours) who got the inningsgoing. But the latter’s run out ignited a mini-collapse, changing thecomplexion of the game.Younis, after a wayward three overs, found his rhythm and gave himselfan extended first spell. His inswinger got Kumar Sangakkara bowledthrough a wide-open gate. And next over Aravinda de Silva perishedtrying to guide him to fine leg, as Rashid Latif pouched the insideedge, after the square-leg umpire nodded in affirmative that the ballhad been taken cleanly.From a strong position of nought for 42, to 53 for three Sri Lankaninnings had really been put off the rails.And then Jayasuriya and Mahela Jayawardene, who had put the Pakistanattack to the sword in a stand of 111 off a mere 117 deliveries to notjust rehabilitate the Lankan innings, but also giving it the impetusthat promised a score far larger than they eventually got. HereJayawardene was run out, a brilliant piece of work by Rashid Latif inthe field, running to short square leg to pick up the ball and breakingthe stumps. The innings once again came unstuck as Jayasuriya toofollowed him soon after, just three runs short of what would have beenhis 13th one-day hundred.Grabbing this window of opportunity, Waqar brought back Wasim Akram, andhe delivered first ball, trapping the Lankan skipper plumb in front. Asuperlative innings of controlled aggression came to a close.The Lankans never recovered from this twin blow within the space of 11balls. Razzaq, Sami, Waqar and again Akram got amongst the wickets.There was not a single innings of substance, though Arnold (34, 51balls, 3 fours) struck two boundaries but Waqar got him caught andbowled for his third wicket on the last delivery of the penultimateover. Akram got Muralitharan with a delivery to spare to get the Lankansbowled out.