Ayesha, Omaima star as Pakistan sink Sri Lanka in nail-biter

SYLHET: Ayesha Naseem hit two sixes in a row to finish the proceeding in style after Omaima Sohail decimated the Sri Lankan batting lineup with astounding bowling figures of 5/13 as Pakistan sealed a thrilling win over Sri Lanka in the 21st match of the ongoing Women’s Asia Cup 2022.

Set to chase 113, the green shirts steered to glory in the 19th over with five wickets to spare despite a poor start.

Pakistan lost wickets at regular intervals in the run chase and slipped to 51/4 in the 10th over with captain Bismah Maroof also walking back to the dressing room after scoring 13 off 16.

All-rounder Nida Dar and Aliya Riaz then anchored the run chase with a vital 45-run partnership for the fifth wicket before the latter fell victim to Kavisha Dilhari. Aliya scored 20 off 26 with the help of three boundaries.

Following the slump, Dar then joined hands with Ayesha and made sure to power their side to victory and avoided any further stutter. Dar top-scored for Pakistan as she remained unbeaten with 26 off 28 including a boundary.

Ayesha, on the other hand, stole the show with two consecutive sixes and accumulated 16* off just five deliveries.

Dilhari was the pick of the bowlers for Sri Lanka as she bagged two wickets, while Inoka Ranaweera, Achini Kulasuriya, and Oshadi Ranasinghe made one scalp each.

Batting first, after winning the toss, the Sri Lankan batting line-up failed completely skittled out for a paltry 112 in the 19th over.

Skipper Chamari Athapaththu provided a solid start to her side as she scored a gritty 41 up the order. She faced 26 deliveries and smashed nine boundaries before falling to Tuba Hassan in the ninth over.

Following her dismissal, the side began to lose wickets at an alarming rate, courtesy of a magnificent bowling spell from Omaima. Ranasinghe fought out with a gritty 26 in the middle but, she too, could not power her side out of trouble.

Omaima returned with match-winning figures of 5/13, while Tuba bagged two. Dar, on the other hand, struck out a batter.

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