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Pakistan Stars Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood Fall Short Of Mammoth Sachin Tendulkar-Virender Sehwag Record vs England

admin — Tue, 08 Oct 2024 05:49:50 +0000

File image of Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag.© BCCI

Pakistan Test skipper Shan Masood and opener Abdullah Shafique toppled records with an indelible partnership on the opening day of the first Test against England in Multan on Monday. On a grassy surface that was dry on a closer look, Masood and Shafique tested England’s inexperienced bowlers to their limits on a sunny day in Multan. After Pakistan lost young opener Saim Ayub early to Gus Atkinson in the first session, Masood and Shafique forged a sensational 253-run stand for the second wicket. The duo etched their name into the history book by stitching up the fourth-highest stand for the second wicket in the history of Pakistan Test cricket.

The legendary duo of Mushtaq Mohammad and Zaheer Abbas hold the record for the highest partnership for the second wicket for Pakistan in Test format following their 291-run masterclass stand against England in Birmingham in 1971.

With Masood playing the role of aggressor, the Pakistan skipper led the charge and scored at a strike rate of 100 for the majority of his innings.

Shafique was more cautious in his approach throughout his time on the crease, especially when England adopted the ploy of short ball barrage in the second session.

The record-breaking partnership came to its bitter end after both players started to show signs of cramping up. A tired shot from Shafique in Atkinson’s over turned out to be the end of the 253-run partnership. Shafique walked back with a score of 102(184) to his name.

Masood soon followed in the footsteps of his partner after Jack Leach tossed up the ball and the Pakistan skipper cushioned it back into the hands of the spinner. Masood’s impressive show in Multan concluded with a score of 151(177).

In the history of the decorated Multan cricket stadium, this was the second-highest partnership that the ground ever witnessed in Test format.

The everlasting 336-run partnership between India’s iconic duo of Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar remains to be dethroned.

The record-tumbling stand is the first time in five years since December 2019 that England conceded a 250-plus runs partnership in Test format.

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Pakistan Star, Who ‘Has Better Record Than Virat Kohli’, Slams Test Ton Against England

admin — Tue, 08 Oct 2024 01:59:01 +0000

Abdullah Shafique in action© AFP

Pakistan cricket team batter Abdullah Shafique returned to form with a brilliant century on Day 1 of the first Test match against England in Multan on Monday. Shafique looked in tremendous touch as he slammed 102 off 184 deliveries before getting dismissed by Gus Atkinson. It was a significant knock for the Pakistan cricketer who scored three ducks in the last three matches. Even Pakistan skipper Shan Masood was asked about Shafique’s form but he defended his teammate with a reference to India batter Virat Kohli. Masood pointed out that after 19 Tests, Shafique’s record was actually better than Kohli.

“With all due respect, I don’t think your question is accurate…I agree that Pakistan hasn’t played good cricket in 2024. Things should be looked at objectively. You talk about stats. The other day I was reading a stat that Abdullah Shafique, who has played 19 Tests, has a better record than Virat Kohli,” he said.

Shan Masood and opener Abdullah Shafique both cracked centuries as Pakistan scored an impressive 328-4 on the opening day of the first Test against England in Multan on Monday.

Masood’s brilliant 151 was his first hundred for four years, while Shafique also returned to form with 102 as the pair put on a solid 253-run stand for the second wicket after Pakistan won the toss and batted.

England, led by Ollie Pope in the absence of the injured Ben Stokes, briefly fought back when they removed both Masood and Shafique in the space of just two runs in the third session.

The visitors then took the second new ball at 308-3 and dismissed Babar Azam, trapped leg-before by fast bowler Chris Woakes for 30. Saud Shakeel was unbeaten on 35 at the close of play, with nightwatchman Naseem Shah yet to score.

(With AFP inputs)

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Shan Masood, Abdullah Shafique Centuries Lift Pakistan To 328-4 In First England Test

admin — Mon, 07 Oct 2024 13:44:25 +0000

Skipper Shan Masood and opener Abdullah Shafique both cracked centuries as Pakistan scored an impressive 328-4 on the opening day of the first Test against England in Multan on Monday. Masood’s brilliant 151 was his first hundred for four years, while Shafique also returned to form with 102 as the pair put on a solid 253-run stand for the second wicket after Pakistan won the toss and batted. England, led by Ollie Pope in the absence of the injured Ben Stokes, briefly fought back when they removed both Masood and Shafique in the space of just two runs in the third session. The visitors took the second new ball at 308-3 and dismissed Babar Azam, trapped leg-before by fast bowler Chris Woakes for 30. Saud Shakeel was unbeaten on 35 at the close of play with nightwatchman Naseem Shah yet to score.

England’s attack toiled hard in the Multan heat, with fast bowler Gus Atkinson the most successful with 2-70. Woakes and spinner Jack Leach both took a wicket each.

Masood had been under pressure to make runs, with his last hundred coming against the same opponents at Manchester in 2020 — 14 Tests and 27 innings ago.

He pushed Woakes for a single to complete his fifth Test hundred off just 102 balls with two sixes and 13 fours in a dominant display of batting.

Shafique was equally assured as the pair made England’s three-pronged pace attack and two spinners toil on a batting-friendly pitch.

England took a wicket in the fourth over when Atkinson forced opener Saim Ayub to glove a shorter ball down the leg side to wicketkeeper Jamie Smith with the total on eight.

The visitors thought they had a second when pace bowler Brydon Carse, on debut, trapped Masood in front on 16 and umpire Kumar Dharmasena gave him out.

However, a review showed the ball had pitched outside the leg stump.

Masood went on the attack against Shoaib Bashir, hitting the off-spinner for four boundaries before two more off Atkinson took him to his 11th Test fifty.

Shafique survived being run out on 34 when Pope missed the stumps with his diving throw with the batsman well short of his ground. He smashed two fours and a six off Bashir to reach his sixth Test half-century.

Both teams have picked three fast bowlers and two spinners, hoping that the pitch will offer new-ball help to the seamers before taking spin later in the match.

The remaining Tests are in Multan (October 15-19) and Rawalpindi (October 24-28).

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Pakistan Star Asked To “Pack Bags And Leave” After Bangladesh Test Debacle

admin — Tue, 27 Aug 2024 09:39:15 +0000

Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali slammed Abdullah Shafique for his lacklustre performance in the opening Test against Bangladesh. Pakistan’s decision to declare at 448/6 in the first innings came back to haunt them after Bangladesh outplayed them in all facets of the game. The Najmul Hossain Shanto-led side scripted history by clinching a 10-wicket win in Rawalpindi. Their emphatic triumph marked their first win against Pakistan in the Test format. Pakistan’s downfall began after Bangladesh managed to take a 117-run lead over the hosts.

On Day 5, wickets continued to tumble one after another, but Abdullah Shafique held onto his end and continued to pile up runs on the board.

With Mohammad Rizwan on the other end, Pakistan looked well set to put up a respectable total on the board. But all hopes were dashed when Shafique tried to pull off a reckless shot against Shakib Al Hasan. He came down the track and tried to go for a big shot but failed.

Basit didn’t hold back while criticising the Pakistan opener and pinpointed Shafique’s wicket as the reason behind the team’s loss.

“If I was in the dressing room, I would have told Abdullah Shafique to pack his bags and leave. His shot was the reason Pakistan lost the match. After hitting 37, you are giving away your wicket with such a shot. Shan Masood should punish Shafique. This is Pakistan’s team, not your local team. They played the wrong combination,” Basit said on his YouTube channel.

Shafique wasn’t the only one who gave away his wicket cheaply. Naseem Shah was yet another one who tried to go for glory when holding the fort was the need of the situation.

“Look at the way Naseem Shah gave away his wicket. This is Pakistan cricket, not street cricket, this happens in England’s league cricket,” he added.

Apart from players being lured into playing false shots, Pakistan’s failure to read the nature of the surface was also among the root causes of their loss.

Pakistan decided to go for an all-out pace attack after leaving Abrar Ahmed out of the team. The decision didn’t pan out the way they would have hoped for. Bangladesh spin duo of Shakib Al Hasan and Mehidy Hasan Miraz combined to pick nine wickets to cause Pakistan a lot of trouble.

Basit believes Pakistan’s Test head coach, Jason Gillespie, fell short in perceiving the pitch.

“Both Gary Kirsten and Jason Gillespie lost their opening matches. They both made mistakes. Kirsten made a mistake in the Super Over against the US, and Jason made a mistake in reading the pitch,” he noted.

Pakistan will look to level the series in the second Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on August 30.

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Inzamam-ul-Haq Rips Into Shaheen Afridi Despite Bowler Scoring 34-ball 55 In PSL

admin — Tue, 12 Mar 2024 06:45:24 +0000

Shaheen Afridi has been a busy man in the Pakistan Super League, becoming a constant topic of chatter among fans and experts. His decision to promote himself up the order hasn’t been well received by some former cricketers and even the legendary Inzamam-ul-Haq had a critical analysis of the southpaw despite him scoring 55 runs off 34 balls for Lahore Qalandars against Quetta Gladiators. Afridi stitched a 91-run partnership with Abdullah Shafique for the 4th wicket, but his team went on to lose the match.

“This partnership between Abdullah Shafique and Shaheen Afridi… if you look at the scorecard, then it looks very impressive, scoring 55 off 34 balls and the other scoring 59 off 39 balls. But the scorecard doesn’t do justice to it. They played all the overs – almost 14 – and all you could take the total to was 167, whereas it should have been 200-plus. Did anyone feel that Lahore will be able to win from here? Or will Lahore defend it?” asked a miffed Inzamam on Suno News.

With Abdullah in the middle since the powerplay and Shaheen from the 10th over, Inzamam feels the duo should’ve scored runs at a much-faster rate. A total of 166 for the loss of just 4 wickets isn’t justifiable, as far as the former Pakistan captain is concerned.

Inzamam further said that had specialist T20 batters like Sikandar Raza and David Wiese played as many deliveries as Shaheen and Shafique did, the score would’ve been much higher.

“Shaheen coming in to bat at No. 5 but scoring at that pace is not good for the team. Had specialists like David Wiese and Sikandar Raza faced 34 balls, the score could have been better. He should’ve put pressure on Abdullah Shafique too, asking him “bhai… tu tez khel (boss, score faster). If a batter is playing from the first over to the last, and score 60 runs, it isn’t acceptable. They need to take care of one big fact. If you start getting into individual efforts, the team’s cause will go for a toss,” asserted Inzamam.

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“Work In Drama Industry”: Wasim Akram Blasts Pakistan Star’s Celebration During PSL Match

admin — Sat, 09 Mar 2024 03:08:01 +0000

Legendary Pakistan cricket team skipper Wasim Akram blasted Abdullah Shafique for his ‘silent’ celebration after taking a good catch to dismiss Imad Wasim during the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2024 match between Lahore Qalandars and Islamabad United on Thursday. Abdullah took a sharp catch at first slip and then celebrated by putting his finger over his mouth to ‘silence his critics’. However, Akram was not happy with his celebration and went on to say that he should ‘work in the drama industry’.

“No doubt, great catch but who is responsible for dropping 36 catches in Australia’s Test series? Who will answer for that? Abdullah should work in drama industry rather than cricket,” he said on A Sports.

Meanwhile, with time running out and short on choices, the Pakistan Cricket Board has turned to three foreign coaches in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) to see if either of them are interested in coaching the national team at least until next year’s ICC Champions Trophy.

A reliable source in the PCB said that the board had initial talks with Australian allrounder Shane Watson (Quetta Gladiators franchise), New Zealand’s Mike Hesson (Islamabad United) and West Indian Phil Simmons (Karachi) to find if either of them would be interested in a coaching contract.

“Initial talks have been held but it is too early to say if either of them is interested since at least two of them have prior assignments in other leagues as well,” the source said.

New PCB chief, Mohsin Naqvi has already made it clear that he wants to appoint a foreign coaching staff for the upcoming assignments of the Pakistan team, including the World T20 Cup and Champions Trophy.

But given PCB’s poor reputation of dealing with foreign and local coaches and support staff, high profile coaches are wary of taking up contracts with the Pakistan team.

“Yes it is a problem specially after the way Zaka Ashraf (former Chairman) forced Mickey Arthur, Grant Bradburn and the other foreign coaches to go after the World Cup,” the source said.

“The way Misbah ul Haq, Waqar Younis, Muhammad Hafeez were removed are examples.” He said another problem is most of the top coaches now held contracts with franchises in many leagues around the globe, including the Indian Premier League.

(With PTI inputs)

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Cricket World Cup 2023: Pakistan Knock Out Bangladesh With Seven-Wicket Win

admin — Tue, 31 Oct 2023 15:57:50 +0000

Opener Fakhar Zaman capped his return with an attacking fifty after Shaheen Shah Afridi’s fiery spell as Pakistan knocked Bangladesh out of the Cricket World Cup 2023 with a seven-wicket win to keep their slim semifinal hopes alive in Kolkata on Tuesday. Shaheen spearheaded their three-pronged pace attack with splendid figures of 9-1-23-3 as Pakistan bundled out Bangladesh for a lowly 204 in 45.1 overs. Fakhar, who missed five of their six matches because of a knee injury, smashed seven sixes and three fours in his 74-ball 81. Abdullah Shafique also struck a quick 68 off 69 balls (9×4, 2×6) as the new-look opening pair laid the foundation with an imposing 128-run alliance.

Just when it looked like a one-way traffic for Pakistan, off-spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz (3/60) took both the openers but with no scoreboard pressure Pakistan knocked off the paltry 205-run target in 32.3 overs.

This was Bangladesh’s sixth loss on the trot as the Shakib Al Hasan-led side became the first team to be officially eliminated from the 10-team global showpiece with two matches in hand.

They next play Sri Lanka and Australia in their last two matches.

Having returned to winning ways after enduring four defeats, Pakistan with three wins from seven matches kept their faint semifinal hopes alive. They next take on New Zealand before concluding their league campaign against England.

Pakistan’s new left-right handed opening duo started off with utmost caution, conceding two maiden off Bangladesh’s new ball bowlers Shoriful Islam and Taskin Ahmed in first three overs.

But that was it, as the Pakistani duo soon started milking the attack and raced to 52 for no loss inside the powerplay.

The duo soon switched gears with Zaman smoking Taskin Ahmed over square leg for a 99-metre six. There was no stopping them and Shaifque took on Mustafizur Rahman for three successive boundaries.

Zaman brought up his 16th ODI half-century in 51 balls when he stepped up to Bangla pacer Taskin with a massive six down the ground. In the previous over, Shafique took 51 balls to get to his third half-century.

Zaman, however, missed out on a well-deserved century, holing out at midwicket to give Mehidy his third wicket.

Skipper Babar Azam, however, continued to disappoint getting out for 9 (16b) when he mistimed a shot off Miraz.

But Mohammad Rizwan (26 not out) and Iftikhar Ahmed (17 not out) finished off the chase with 107 balls to spare.

Earlier, Shaheen rattled the Bangladeshi top-order and became the fastest Pakistani to reach 100 ODI wickets. Mohammad Wasim Jr. then cleaned up the tail returning with figures of 8.1-1-31-3 as Bangladesh failed to last the distance yet again to be bowled out in 45.1 overs.

Shaheen may have lost his pace a bit after recovering from a knee injury, but he bowled with clever variations and extracted swing on a flat Eden wicket.

The 23-year-old straightway got into the action, trapping Tanzid Hasan leg before wicket with extra bounce and late swing. That happened to be his 100th wicket in ODIs. He became the fastest Pakistani to do so beating Saqlain Mushtaq’s mark by a couple of innings.

A brilliant low diving catch by Usama Mir at forward short leg made it two in two overs for Shaheen.

It would have been worse for Bangladesh but Mahmudullah made a responsible 56 off 70 balls (6×4, 1×6) in a 79-run partnership with Litton Das (45; 64b).

From 6/2 in 2.4 overs, Bangladesh were looking at yet another capitulation when Haris Rauf dismissed Mushfiqur Rahim to reduce them to 23/3 before Mahmudullah came to his team’s rescue.

The intent was clear from the Bangladesh perspective as they promoted Mahmudullah to No 5.

After Shaheen was taken off the attack, Pakistan also failed to build pressure from both ends, giving Litton and Mahmudullah enough opportunity to make a quick recovery.

The likes of Wasim Jr and Mir, who impressed with their tidy show against South Africa, gave a lot of freebies and the Bangladeshi duo was happy to pierce the gaps.

They welcomed Wasim Jr with a couple of boundaries while Mir too was hit for a four in his first over.

Bangladesh were looking in no trouble before off-spinner Iftikhar Ahmed (1/44) provided the crucial breakthrough dismissing Litton.

Shaheen was recalled and bowling around the wicket, he produced a gem of a delivery to end Mahmudullah’s stay in the middle.

Skipper Shakib Al Hasan then tried to forge a partnership but frittered away his start and was done in by a short ball from by Haris Raul (2/36).

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The Curse Is Over! Pakistan Finally End 1168-Ball Wait During Cricket World Cup 2023 Clash

admin — Tue, 24 Oct 2023 15:22:32 +0000

Abdullah Shafique finally ended Pakistan’s 1168-ball wait for a six during the powerplay overs as he slammed Naveen-ul-Haq for a maximum during the Cricket World Cup 2023 match against Afghanistan in Chennai on Monday. Despite having several explosive batters in their ranks, Pakistan have found it difficult to hit sixes during the initial overs in ODI cricket and that curse was finally lifted at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. It was a back of the length delivery from Naveen and Shafique was on to it in a flash. The right-hander took a brilliant position and slammed the ball for a big six over deep square leg. This was the first six by a Pakistan batter in the powerplay in 2023.

Pakistan captain Babar Azam won the toss and opted to bat first in the Cricket World Cup 2023 match against Afghanistan in Chennai on Monday.

History in Chennai:

Pakistan hit a six in the Powerplay of an ODI after 1,168 deliveries. pic.twitter.com/8YYAbklrFy

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) October 23, 2023

Pakistan, who have two wins and as many defeats from four games, brought in Shadab Khan for fellow spinner Mohammad Nawaz who is ruled out with illness.

BREAKING NEWS : 1st six for Pakistan in powerplay in 2023#PAKvsAFG pic.twitter.com/zmCBVdTMAZ

— Muhammad Abdullah (@mabdullahsh2005) October 23, 2023

Afghanistan, who have just one win from four matches, named left-arm spinner Noor Ahmad in place of fast bowler Fazalhaq Farooqi.

Teams:

Pakistan: Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (wkt), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, Shahen Shah Afridi, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf

Afghanistan:Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (captain), Azmatullah Omarzai, Ikram Alikhil (wkt), Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Noor Ahmad.

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PAK vs AFG | Fifties from Babar, Shafique help Pakistan post 282/7

admin — Mon, 23 Oct 2023 12:42:43 +0000

Babar Azam plays a shot during the World Cup 2023 match between Pakistan and Afghanistan at M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai October 23, 2023.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Opting to bat, Pakistan scored 282 for 7 in their World Cup match against Afghanistan here on Monday.

Captain Babar Azam top-scored with 74 off 92 deliveries while opener Abdullah Shafique contributed 58. Shadab Khan and Iftikhar Ahmed made 40 each down the order to take the score past 280.

Noor Ahmad was the most successful Afghan bowler with figures of 3/49 while Naveen-ul-Haq chipped in with 2/52.

Scoreboard:

Pakistan Innings: Abdullah Shafique lbw b Noor Ahmad 58 Imam-ul-Haq c Naveen-ul-Haq b Azmatullah Omarzai 17 Babar Azam c Mohammad Nabi b Noor Ahmad 74 Mohammad Rizwan c Mujeeb Ur Rahman b Noor Ahmad 8 Saud Shakeel c Rashid Khan b Mohammad Nabi 25 Shadab Khan c Mohammad Nabi b Naveen-ul-Haq 40 Iftikhar Ahmed c Azmatullah Omarzai b Naveen-ul-Haq 40 Shaheen Shah Afridi not out 3 Extras: (LB-4 NB-1 W-12) 17

Total: (For 7 wickets in 50 overs) 282

Fall of wickets: 1/56 2/110 3/120 4/163 5/206 6/279 7/282

Afghanistan bowling: Naveen-ul-Haq 7-0-52-2, Mujeeb Ur Rahman 8-0-55-0, Mohammad Nabi 10-0-31-1, Azmatullah Omarzai 5-0-50-1, Rashid Khan 10-0-41-0, Noor Ahmad 10-0-49-3.

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Pakistan vs Sri Lanka: Pakistan Chase Down Highest Target In World Cup History To Beat Sri Lanka

admin — Tue, 10 Oct 2023 17:31:56 +0000

Mohammad Rizwan and Abdullah Shafique clubbed centuries as Pakistan chased down the highest target in World Cup history to beat Sri Lanka by six wickets in Hyderabad on Tuesday. The diminutive Rizwan overcame leg cramps to score a 121-ball 131 not out while Shafique hit a 103-ball 113 as Pakistan overhauled their 345-run target in 48.2 overs. The victory gives Pakistan two wins in as many games and a huge boost in confidence ahead of their high-profile clash against India in Ahmedabad on Saturday.

Highest targets chased down in World Cup history:

345 by Pakistan against Sri Lanka in Hyderabad (2023)

328 by Ireland against England in Bengaluru (2011)

322 by Bangladesh against West Indies in Taunton (2019)

319 by Bangladesh against Scotland in Nelson (2015)

313 by Sri Lanka against Zimbabwe in New Plymouth (1992)

Sri Lanka’s imposing total of 344-9 was built around brilliant hundreds from Kusal Mendis and Sadeera Samarawickrama.

Rizwan cracked eight boundaries and three sixes while Shafique’s knock had ten boundaries and three sixes as Pakistan improved on the previous highest World Cup chase of 328 by Ireland against England in Bangalore in 2011.

Rizwan added a match-turning 176 run stand for the third wicket with Shafique and another 95 for the fourth with Saud Shakeel who made a 30-ball 31.

Rizwan and Shafique lifted Pakistan from a disastrous start in which they lost Imam-ul-Haq (12) and skipper Babar Azam (ten) to pacer Dilshan Madushanka.

Haq, who completed 3,000 runs in 67 innings to become the second joint fastest to the milestone, hooked into the hands of the fielder while Azam edged a flick behind the wicket.

Shafique, who replaced out-of-form Fakhar Zaman, justified his selection by reaching his maiden hundred off 97 balls.

Shafique fell in the 34th over to Matheesha Pathirana but Rizwan continued the chase, reaching his third ODI hundred off 97 balls.

He hit the winning single and raised his hands in delight.

When Sri Lanka batted, after winning the toss, Mendis smashed the fastest century for Sri Lanka in a World Cup match with a 77-ball 122, his highest score in ODIs and third century.

– Mendis dropped twice -It was an innings spiced with 14 boundaries and half a dozen sixes, leading the charge for Sri Lanka while Samarawickrama hit an 89-ball 108 for his maiden hundred.

Samarawickrama hit 11 boundaries and two sixes.

Mendis twice escaped dropped catches — Shaheen Shah Afridi dropped him off his own bowling in the fifth over and then Imam-ul-Haq blundered in the next over again off Shaheen on 18.

Mendis completed his 50 off 40 balls with his seventh boundary, lifting Sri Lanka from the early loss of Kusal Perera (nought) in the second over to Hasan Ali.

Mendis put on a 102 with Pathum Nissanka whose 51 came off 61 balls with seven boundaries and a six.

Once Nissanka fell to Shadab Khan, Mendis and Samarawickrama unleashed some superb hitting against Pakistan’s pacers and spinners alike, adding 111 for the third wicket.

They were savage on fast bowler Haris Rauf, hitting him for two sixes and a boundary in the 21st over.

When Shaheen came back for a second spell, Mendis cracked three fours in the 25th over.

Hasan was hoisted by Mendis for a six to allow the batsman his third hundred off 65 balls.

It was his first century in three-and-a-half years but he had made 76 in the opening defeat to South Africa and now has at least five half-centuries in his last seven ODIs.

Previously, Kumar Sangakkara held the Sri Lanka World Cup record with a 70-ball hundred, scored against England in 2015.

Mendis’s previous best was 119 against the West Indies in Hambantota in February 2020.

Mendis hit two sixes off Hasan’s 29th over before he holed out at deep mid-wicket boundary.

Hasan then removed Charith Asalanka for one but Samarawickrama and Dhananjaya de Silva (25) added 65 for the fifth wicket.

Hasan finished as the best bowler with 4-71 while Rauf took 2-64.

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