GALLE – Pakistani skipper and top batter Babar Azam slammed another astounding century to propel Men in Green out of the crisis in the first innings against Sri Lanka.
The star batter marked his seventh ton and reached the milestone of 10,000 international runs during his crucial knock of 119 runs before being dismissed by Maheesh Theekshana.
The 27-year-old also smashed Virat Kohli’s record to become the fastest Asian batter to complete 10,000 runs in international cricket.
Evenly poised after another engrossing day 🤩@babarazam258's glorious knock and 🇵🇰's lower-order resistance was followed by an important strike by @mnawaz94 before stumps 👏
Scorecard: https://t.co/VQ0EZLGLRd#SLvPAK | #BackTheBoysInGreen pic.twitter.com/RSjJCWEUfo
— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) July 17, 2022
Besides Babar’s innings, the batting line of visitors remained helpless as the team was struggling on 148/9 before a 70-run last-wicket partnership between the captain and the young Naseem Shah.
Pakistani skipper remained the major runs contributor in the persistent 10th wicket stand while right-arm pacer put up a strong resistance against hosts.
Lankan side started their second inning with a four-run lead and was off to a solid start before Mohammad Nawaz struck in the second last over to remove the skipper Dimuth Karunaratne on 16.
Earlier in the day, Men in Green underwent complete batting chaos after resuming with the overnight score of 24/2. Left-arm spinner Jayasuriya outclassed Azhar Ali on just the third ball as the play resumed on the second day with a half-an-hour delay.
Jayasuriya then claimed four crucial wickets in the first session of the second day to topple the touring party’s batting order.
Earlier, Pakistan restricted Sri Lanka to 222-run after Shaheen showcased his skills and talent in spin-friendly conditions and claimed four wickets to topple the hosts’ batting order.
Babar Azam surpasses Virat Kohli to reach fastest 10,000 international runs
Squads
Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (vc, wk), Abdullah Shafique, Azhar Ali, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi and Yasir Shah
Sri Lanka: Dimuth Karunartne (c) Oshanda Fernando, Angelo Mathews, Kusal Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dinesh Chandimal, Niroshan Dickwella (wk), Ramesh Mendis, Maheesh Theekshana, Kasun Rajitha, Prabath Jayasuriya
