Twitter Reactions: Babar Azam, Usman Shinwari rip Sri Lanka apart

Pakistan celebrated the return of cricket to the country with an emphatic win. Special efforts from Babar Azam and Usman Shinwari were on display in Karachi. Courtesy Shehan Jayasuriya and Dasun Shanaka, Sri Lanka managed to escape some huge embarrassment. After Sarfaraz Ahmed won the toss, he had no hesitations about batting first. The track wasn’t the easiest to bat on but the side batting first had an advantage.

The ball came on nicely in the first innings as the Pakistan openers put up a good partnership. Fakhar Zaman and Imam-ul-Haq added 73 runs for the first wicket before the latter got out for 31. Fakhar, however, carried on with his knock and went on to get 54 runs. Even though he missed out on getting a further big score, Babar Azam didn’t do the same mistake. It seemed as if he was batting on a different surface altogether. He entertained the fans with some glorious cricketing shots.

Babar Azam went on to register his 11th ODI century. He mustered 115 off 105 before Lahiru Kumara got him. Haris Sohail looked good with a 48-ball 40 while Sarfaraz Ahmed scored 8. Both these batsmen were dismissed in the form of a run-out. Nevertheless, Iftikhar Ahmed provided the team with the final impetus with his unbeaten 32 off 20 balls. This helped Pakistan get past 300 and they finished with 305/7.

Usman Shinwari leaves the Sri Lankan batsmen clueless

It was a dreadful start to the chase for Sri Lanka. Usman Shinwari broke through early with a couple of wickets. He dismissed Samarawickrama and Avishka Fernando for 6 and 0 respectively. Meanwhile, Mohammad Amir got the better of Gunathilaka from the other end. Imad Wasim also joined the act and got Oshada Fernando while Shinwari once again got a wicket. This time, it was that of skipper Lahiru Thirimanne for a duck. At 28/5, Sri Lanka was nowhere in the chase.

But, Shehan Jayasuriya and Dasun Shanaka came up with a superlative effort. They put on 177 runs for the sixth wicket – a record stand by itself. But, they couldn’t take their team home. Jayasuriya was unlucky and got out on 96 while Shanaka was dismissed for 68. Sri Lanka was bowled out for 238 in 46.5 overs and lost the game by 67 runs. Usman Shinwari picked up a 5-wicket haul. Twitterati was all praise for him and Babar Azam. They also applauded Shehan Jayasuriya and Dasun Shanaka for their efforts.

Here is how Twitterati reacted: