Media365
Faheem Ashraf pulled off a relay catch to break Sri Lanka’s opening partnership in the ODI Tri-Series match against Pakistan after debutant wicketkeeper Saad Baig failed to hold on to the ball.Pakistan had posted 305 runs after batting first, and Sri Lanka made a steady start to their chase with a 30-run opening stand. However, the partnership ended in the sixth over when Naseem Shah dismissed Avishka Fernando in an unusual fashion.Naseem bowled a short delivery that Fernando tried to pull, but the batter was cramped for room and got a top edge. The ball went high towards short fine leg, where Baig ran in to take the catch.The debutant got both hands to the ball but lost his balance, allowing it to pop out of his gloves. Ashraf, who was positioned behind Baig near deep fine leg, reacted quickly and caught the ball after it slipped out of the wicketkeeper’s hands, completing the relay catch.Earlier, Pakistan posted 305 after Salman Ali Agha scored 107 off 90 balls. Babar Azam contributed 45 runs and crossed the 16,000-run mark in international cricket, becoming the fifth Pakistan batter to achieve the feat.Javed Miandad, Mohammad Yousuf, Inzamam-ul-Haq and Younis Khan are the other Pakistan batters to have scored more than 16,000 international runs across the three formats.Sri Lanka were bowled out for 268 as Pakistan won the match by 37 runs.
