Sri Lanka thrash Afghanistan in second ODI: Key stats

Sri Lanka defeated Afghanistan by 132 runs in the second ODI at the Mahindra Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium in Hambantota. The hosts have retaliated after losing the first ODI and now they will have everything to play for in the third and final match. It was a collective effort from the Lankans as they did well in all departments to thwart the visitors

Sri Lanka have registered their fifth over the Afghans in a do-or-die match. The Lankans have now won five out of nine ODIs, while the visitors have tasted success only thrice. One of the matches ended inconclusively. Their last meeting saw the Afghans win by six wickets in the first ODI of this series. The visitors chased down the target of 269 with conviction.

It was a welcome knock for Dimuth Karunaratne, who has returned to the side after more than two years. But after failing in the first outing, the veteran batter gave SL a great start along with Pathum Nissanka. The openers added 82 runs and laid the platform for the middle-order batters. Karunaratne's 52 was laced with seven fours. This was his seventh ODI fifty.

Kusal Mendis carried forward the momentum that was started by Karunaratne. He played his strokes and kept the scoreboard ticking with his 75-ball 78. He smashed seven boundaries and a six. Mendis reached his fifty in 57 deliveries. He has raced to 2,743 runs, slamming 21 fifties. Mendis boasts stellar numbers in 2023 across formats. He has tallied 874 runs in 19 international innings.

Ibrahim Zadran continued his sensational form in ODIs. Albeit in a losing cause, his 75-ball 54 was a knock that showcased his technique. He stitched a 51-run stand with Rahmat Shah for the second wicket. He later added 84 runs along with Hasmatullah Shahidi to take Afghanistan close to 150 runs. Zadran has slammed 585 runs in 10 ODIs at 65.00.

Afghanistan skipper Hasmatullah Shahidi also fought valiantly, registering his 14th ODI fifty. He also completed 1,600 runs in this format at an average of 33.33. This was his maiden half-century against the Lankans. He has amassed 170 runs against them in seven ODIs at an average of 24.28. Shahidi's 84-run stand with Ibrahim gave the visitors some hope of chasing down the mammoth total.

Afghanistan's Fareed Ahmad has continued good form with another 2/61 from his nine overs. Mohammad Nabi also scalped two wickets from his 10 overs SL bowlers were class apart on the night as Dhananjaya de Silva and Wanindu Hasaranga spun their web around the Afghans batters, claiming three wickets apiece. Dushmantha Chameera also finished with exceptional figures of 2/18 from his seven overs.

SL batted first and were off to a great start with Nissanka and Karunaratne adding 82 runs. Later, Mendis and Sadeera Samarawickrama stitched an 88-run stand to take the score forward. Cameos from Dhananjaya and Hasaranga allowed SL to post 323/6. In reply, only Ibrahim and Shahidi could cross the 50-run mark as the visitors were bundled out for 191.