Pakistan win crucial match against Sri Lanka

Updated at: 2218 PST,  Saturday, February 26, 2011

COLOMBO: Pakistan after a tough fight defeated Sri Lanka by 11 runs in their crucial Group A match in the ICC World Cup here at the Premadasa Stadium on Saturday.Shahid Afridi came up with another superb bowling performance after taking his first World Cup five-wicket haul in the previous match against Kenya. He captured four for 34 runs which included his 300th one-day international wicket when he dismissed Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara for 49.Sri Lanka, chasing Pakistan's total of 277-7, replied with 266-9. They have now lost seven times to their sub-continental neighbours in the World Cup, falling in 1975, 1983 (twice), 1987 (twice) and 1992.After captain Shahid Afridi won the toss, Pakistan stalwarts Younus Khan (72) and Misbah-ul-Haq (83) not out) shared a century partnership to set co-hosts Sri Lanka a challenging target to chase under lights.But Pakistan spinners strangled the Sri Lankan batsmen, capturing six of the nine wickets to fall. Sri Lanka got off to a good start with openers Upul Tharanga (33) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (41) putting together 76, but got bogged down in the middle overs and despite a late spurt towards the target fell agonisingly short.Chamara Silva led a late onslaught with a top score of 57 and Nuwan Kulasekara hit a quick 24 off 14 balls, but Sri Lanka had left their run chase a little too late.Openers Tillakaratne Dilshan and Upul Tharanga provided a sound start of 76 runs but Sri Lanka lost four quick wickets for 20 runs, reeling at 96 for four.Then, captain Kumar Sangakkara and Thilan Samaraweera took the score to 167 before Sangakkara departed. They added 71 runs for the fifth wicket Other batsmen could not resist the accurate Pakistan bowling despite fielding lapses. But Chamara Silva batted aggressively to become top scorer for Sri Lanka with 57 off 78 balls.Pakistan stalwarts Younus Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq shared a century partnership after Afridi had won the toss and chose to bat first.The pair came together after Pakistan were reduced to 105 for three and they provided a solid foundation for Pakistan's eventual testing target.

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Pakistan send out warning with Cup win

Updated at: 0003 PST,  Sunday, February 27, 2011

NEW DELHI: Pakistan beat a powerful Sri Lankan side on Saturday for their second World Cup win, sending out an ominous statement of intent to their rivals as Bangalore geared up for the India-England showdown.
A sell-out crowd of 35,000 packed the R. Premadasa stadium in Colombo to witness the much-anticipated Group A clash between 1992 winners Pakistan and 1996 champions Sri Lanka, who both enjoyed convincing opening victories.Pakistan, seeking to keep intact their record of never having lost a World Cup match against Sri Lanka, made a bright start and were indebted to an unbeaten 83 from Test skipper Misbah-ul-Haq and 72 from Younis Khan.Sri Lanka made a good start to their reply but slipped to 96 for four and fell behind the run-rate, finally coming up 11 runs short on 266-9,"That was a big game and the boys all knew how big that game was," said skipper Shahid Afridi, who picked up the man-of-the-match award for his 4-34."I think it's a great message for other teams that we will come harder and harder game by game."Disappointed Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakarra said: "I think we made it a bit difficult for ourselves by losing wickets but we got a good start. We needed a couple of blokes to just kick on and keep batting for a longer time."

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Pakistan set 278-run target for Sri Lanka

Updated at: 1755 PST,  Saturday, February 26, 2011

COLOMBO: Pakistan set a target of 278 runs for hosts Sri Lanka in their crucial Group A match of the ICC World Cup 2011 here at the R Premadasa Stadium on Friday.Batting on an easy wicket, Pakistan plundered 277 runs for the loss of seven wickets in the allotted 50 overs after captain Shahid Afridi won the toss.The main architects of the innings were veteran batsman Younis Khan and experienced Misbah-ul-Haq who steered Pakistan from 105-3 to 213 runs, adding 108 runs for the fourth wicket partnership.Both completed half-centuries – Younis from 56 balls and Misbah in 65 deliveries. They had also made fifties in their previous match against Kenya on Wednesday.Younis made 72 off 76 balls while Misbah top scored with 83 not out from 91 balls.Earlier, openers Ahmed Shehzad and Mohammad Hafeez made 13 and 32, respectively while Kamran Akmal scored 39.Later, Umar Akmal and hahid Aridi scored 10 and 16, respectively while Abdul Razzaq remained not out on 3For Sri Lanka, Rangana Herath and Thisara Perera claimed two wickets each.Sri Lanka left out slinger Lasith Malinga who failed to fully recover from a back strain which forced him to miss the match on Sunday.Chamara Kapugedera and Ajantha Mendis made way for Chamara Silva and left-arm spinner Rangana Herath. Both teams are seeking their second win in the tournament as they have already enjoyed convincing opening victories: Pakistan defeated Kenya by 205 runs and Sri Lanka beat Canada by 210.Pakistan have never lost a World Cup match against Sri Lanka in six previous attempts, but the last time they met was in 1992, before Sri Lanka became one of the game's global powers.

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Pakistan win toss, elect to bat against Sri Lanka

Updated at: 1337 PST,  Saturday, February 26, 2011

COLOMBO: Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi has won the toss and elected to bat against Sri Lanka in their crucial match in Group A of the ICC World Cup 2011 here at the R Premadasa Stadium on Saturday. Both teams are seeking their second win in the tournament as they have already won one match each by a huge margin: Pakistan defeated Kenya by 205 runs and Sri Lanka beat Canada by 210.Sri Lankan fast bowler Lasith Malinga was left out of the team as he was being rested for the later games. Teams:Pakistan - Shahid Afridi (captain), Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hafeez, Kamran Akmal, Younus Khan, Umar Akmal, Abdul Razzaq, Abdur Rehman, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul, A hmed Shehzad. Sri Lanka - Kumar Sangakkara (captain), Mahela Jayawardene, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Upul Tharanga, Thilan Samaraweera, Chamara Silva, Angelo Mathews, Thisara Perera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Muttiah Muralitharan, Rangana Herath.

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Waqar hopeful to win against Sri Lanka

Updated at: 1121 PST,  Saturday, February 26, 2011

COLOMBO: Pakistan coach Waqar Younis played down the threat from Muttiah Muralitharan ahead of their crucial World Cup clash with Sri Lanka on Saturday, saying their batsmen had coped with him in the past. A capacity 35,000-crowd is expected to fill the Premadasa stadium in Colombo for the Group A match -- the first big test for both teams after Sri Lanka easily rolled over Canada and Pakistan crushed Kenya. "In the past if Muralitharan had plans for us, we have played really well against him in this country. "I don't think we should worry about him that much, he is not 28 anymore," said Waqar of the 38-year-old off-spinner, who has 521 wickets in 342 one-day internationals -- a world record. "It is not going to be easy for him any more. We are prepared not only for him but the entire team because we know it's an important match for us and we need to keep the momentum going." Waqar admitted Sri Lanka would be tough to beat in home conditions. "Sri Lanka on their home ground are very good, very difficult to beat. Here the conditions and weather help them, but the way we have played and trained and with our momentum, I am hopeful we can beat them," said the coach. Waqar said he was looking to Abdul Razzaq to boost his tally of runs. "I think Razzaq has done really well with the ball, but he hasn't delivered the goods with the bat apart from one game in Abu Dhabi. "No doubt he is our striker in both batting and bowling," said Waqar of the all-rounder, who hit a quickfire century against South Africa last year."It's right he comes in at eight, but then again we have five batsman, our keeper (Kamran Akmal) is more of a batsman and then there is (Shahid) Afridi, so he doesn't really fit in at the moment. But if we need to send him up the order, if runs are required, we might push him." Waqar also admitted wicket-taking off-spinner Saeed Ajmal was unfortunate not to win a place in the eleven. "We are just going to go with the best combination, what we probably had in the last match, just the best team with which we can win and it's unfortunate that Ajmal is not fitting into it," said Waqar of the 33-year-old off-spinner.(AFP)

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