Madushanka's five-for bowls Pakistan out for 110 as Sri Lanka reach final
Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by eight wickets in Lahore on Tuesday, and the win put them into the final of the one-day tri-series. A tri-series is a short tournament where three teams play 50-over matches against each other, and the top two usually meet in a final.
Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis won the toss and chose to field first, asking his bowlers to take wickets straight away. Pakistan could not build a score. They were dismissed for 110, and Dilshan Madushanka took five wickets for 34 runs, the best figures of his career, according to The Guardian. Babar Azam made 29 for Pakistan.
Sri Lanka's reply was calm and unhurried. Kamindu Mendis finished unbeaten on 62 from 60 balls, with eight fours and two sixes. Sri Lanka reached the target with more than 31 overs of their innings still unused, so the chase was never really in doubt.
The match was a day-night fixture, played under floodlights at the Gaddafi Stadium. It was Match 5 of the tournament, which Pakistan are hosting alongside Sri Lanka and England in October. Pakistan had already beaten Sri Lanka once, by 37 runs in the opening match in Rawalpindi, and had qualified for the final after two wins over England.
The result also ended England's hopes of reaching the final. England had lost to Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi on 22 October, when Sri Lanka chased down 430 and won by two wickets with a ball to spare. Janith Liyanage hit the winning runs with a six off the penultimate ball of the match.
Sri Lanka now face England on Thursday at the Gaddafi Stadium. That match is a dead rubber, meaning it has no bearing on who reaches the final, though it still goes on the record books for both sides. Sri Lanka will play Pakistan in the final on Saturday.
For Pakistan, the defeat means a quick turnaround. They have already secured their place in the final, but they will need a far stronger batting display than the one that ended on 110 if they want to win the title.
Madushanka's figures are the story of the afternoon. A bowler who takes five wickets in an innings is rare in any format, and doing it in a match that decides a finals line-up adds to the weight of the performance.
