Pakistan vs Sri Lanka, 5th ODI: 5 Talking Points

Pakistan won the final ODI of the series by 9 wickets and have whitewashed Sri Lanka in the five-match series at their adopted home. The visitors, on the other hand, were handed the embarrassment of the clean sweep for the third time in the year in the 50-overs format. India and South Africa had inflicted it earlier on them and now Pakistan has achieved the feat. However, this was also the first time since 2008 when the Men in Green have won all the games in the bilateral series.

Having to bowl first, Usman Khan wreaked havoc in the opposition camp right from the first over and scalped a terrific five-wicket haul in his first four overs itself. Sri Lanka never really recovered from those blows and were bundled out for a paltry total of 103 runs. In reply, Pakistan openers played well and looked unperturbed by the opposition bowlers. The target was chased down successfully in the 21st over with the loss of one wicket and a famous series win was scripted under the leadership of Sarfraz Ahmed.

Here we bring you the five talking points of the match:

1. Usman Khan’s magical spell

The left-arm seam bowler Usman Khan found his line and length with a brand new ball in the very first over of the innings. Only playing in his second ODI, he scalped a couple of crucial wickets at the top. He first castled Sadeera Samarawickrama and then found the edge of Dinesh Chandimal with contrasting deliveries. Then he surprised Upul Tharanga with a peach and disturbed his timber. The procession continued and he reduced the visitors to 20/5 within the first 10 overs. His own figures after first five overs were 5/24 which was no less than a magical.

2. Dickwella not opening the innings

The wicketkeeper-batsman Niroshan Dickwella is known for his aggressive batting and has always opened the innings for his team in the limited overs format. But in the final ODI, when Samarawickrama walked out with Tharanga, many eye-brows were raised. Dickwella plays a crucial role at the top with the field restrictions and backs himself to clear the infield. He came out to bat in the middle order and was dismissed for a duck by Usman Khan.

3. Shoddy running from Prasanna

The allrounder Seekkuge Prasanna strode out to the middle in the seventh over itself as the top order failed miserably. He, along with Lahiru Thirimanne, tried to stabilise the innings which was in dire straits. Both added 29 runs and when it looked like they would take their team to a decent total, the shoddy running from Prasanna led to his downfall. While going for a quick single, the batsman didn’t drag his bat and tried to avoid the ball from hitting him. But Shadab Khan disturbed the stumps with his accurate throw and found him agonisingly short of the crease.

4. An excellent review from Shadab

Pakistan has unearthed a 19-year-old kid in Shadab Khan who has bamboozled some of the big names with his variations so far in his short career. He reads the game perfectly and bowls according to the situation. In this match, he only had to apply pressure and he did exactly that by picking lower order wickets. Jeffrey Vandersay didn’t pick a wrong one from him which hit his pads and the appeal was denied by the umpire. The youngster convinced the captain to take a review and looked the only man confident. As it turned out, the ball was hitting the leg-stump and the decision of the umpire had to be overturned courtesy the excellence from Shadab.

5. Fakhar Zaman regains his form

The hero of the final of ICC Champions Trophy, Fakhar Zaman had a lean series so far and the coach was worried about his form going into the game. But he shrugged off all the rustiness and played a useful knock to help Pakistan chase down the paltry total quite easily. In the pursuit of 104, Fakhar never looked in trouble and attacked the hapless bowlers of Sri Lanka. Unfortunately he could not finish the game and was sent back by Vandersay on 48 off just 47 deliveries with 7 hits to the fence.