Nauman Ali's spin masterclass takes Pakistan to Test series victory against Sri Lanka
- 28 Jul 2023
Nauman Ali's seven wickets rattled Sri Lanka and helped Pakistan defeat the hosts by an innings and 222 runs in the second Test in Colombo on Thursday.
With the win Pakistan also takes the series 2-0 against the Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka suffered their heaviest Test defeat at home.
"Everyone stepped up and showed hunger to win this series," skipper Babar Azam said.
The right-arm pacer set the tone for Nauman Ali who was brilliant with his spell of 7-70. Nauman, 36, made a solid comeback following all the criticism and thrashed the batting line of Sri Lanka after they were trailed by 410 runs.
Pakistan declared their first innings at 576-5 soon after Mohammad Rizwan completed his half-century within starting two overs on the fourth day.
Nauman provided an early breakthrough to Pakistan which forced Sri Lanka to go out for Lunch at 81-1. Post-Lunch, Nauman was on song with his spin attack and took five more wickets in no time. Before Tea, Nauman took all six wickets as Sri Lanka walked out with 143-6 on the scoreboard.
Following Tea, Naseem Shah once again started his hunt for a wicket but it took so long for him to take his first wicket in the innings. Meanwhile, an 'out' decision off him was also overturned after which Nauman bagged his seventh to go closer to the world record of bagging all 10 wickets in an innings.
However, Naseem finally struck, and that too in style, picking all the last three wickets in a row.
Experienced Angelo Mathews fought hard for his team as he scored unbeaten 63 runs including seven boundaries and two maximums.
Pakistan's Rizwan (37*) and Agha Salman (132*) resumed Pakistan's innings at 563-5 on the fourth day. Rizwan scored quick runs to complete his half-century before Babar Azam called for declaration.