Player of the Match
Player of the Match

And that's it from us. Sri Lanka and Pakistan share the two-match T20I series, and will head fresh into the first ODI on December 18. Hope you all enjoyed the match as much as we did. On behalf of Vishal Dikshit, Venkat Raghav, this is Rohan Sharma saying good night, and good luck!

Dinesh Chandimal, Sri Lanka captain: We are over the moon. We keep our No. 1 ranking. Kusal and Dilshan batted really well, after that Seekkuge and Sangakkara batted well at the end. You know he's a legend (Sanga), he's a world-class batsman. We have some tricks up our sleeves for the ODIs, and have our game plans for the series.

Shahid Afridi has been named Man of the Series

Kusal Perera (SL), Man of the Match: Feeling very good. It was a very crucial game for us. They were bowling well so I took calculated risks in the first six overs, before rotating the strike. People mention similarities between me and Sanath Jayasuriya. Very confident for rest of series.

Mohammed Hafeez, Pakistan captain: We made the right decision to bowl first but we leaked some of the runs to bowl first. We didn't bowl in the right areas early on, and they got a score higher than what we expected. We were looking at 160-170. I think the effort was great to see by the batsmen though. Whenever there is a two-match series it is tough to decide the series, but the Sri Lankans played very well and Sharjeel put up a good fight, but those four wickets in eight balls proved the difference.

Sajid Rafiq: "Nice fight by Pakistan........ I really wasn't expecting that...."

Noman khan: "i think another t20 needs to be played to get a better series result and entertnmt.."

naqvi: "a good cricket match aftar a long time"

Well there you have it. Sri Lanka posted an imposing 211 for 3, their third-highest T20I score. Pakistan's batsmen showed promise at junctures, but too many wickets fell in clusters, especially towards the middle when five were gone with not too much added on the board. With that the series is drawn 1-1, and Sri Lanka continue to hold their No. 1 ranking, at least till the next series. Pakistan did well to come back into the contest after having been reduced to 85 for 7, with special mention going to Shahid Afridi (28), Sohail Tanvir (41) and Saeed Ajmal (20). Ajmal and Tanvir put on a record ninth-wicket partnership of 63, but it wasn't enough to close the gap. We will be back shortly for the match presentation.

19.2
W
Kulasekara to Saeed Ajmal, OUT, delivers a slower ball on a length as Ajmal is early into his midwicket hoick, with the ball hitting the pads thereafter. The umpire could see the exposed stumps behind upon the moment of impact and raises the finger to dash Pakistani hopes

Saeed Ajmal lbw b Kulasekara 20 (36m 15b 1x4 1x6) SR: 133.33

19.2
1w
Kulasekara to Saeed Ajmal, 1 wide, slower bouncer which is called wide by the umpire as it clearly went over the batsman's head
19.1
1
Kulasekara to Usman Shinwari, 1 run, yorker on target as Usman just squeezes this away to the leg side

Kula to bowl the final over

END OF OVER:
19 | 2 Runs 1 Wkt | PAK: 185/9 (27 runs required from 6 balls, RR: 9.73, RRR: 27.00)

  • Usman Shinwari1 (2b)
  • Saeed Ajmal20 (14b)
  • Lasith Malinga4-0-30-1
  • Thisara Perera3-0-36-2

Looks like it may just be done and dusted with 27 still required, and No. 10 and 11 left to do the job

18.6
1
Malinga to Usman Shinwari, 1 run, full an on the pads as Usman helps this down to fine leg for a single
18.5
0
Malinga to Usman Shinwari, no run, full and going down the leg side as Usman backs away in hopes of clearing this over the leg side. Sanga makes an excellent diving stop behind, and even goes for an appeal, but the umpire was not interested as it definitely bounced before it got to him

Usman Khan walks into a pressure situation

18.4
W
Malinga to Sohail Tanvir, OUT, full and swinging on middle as Sri Lanka manage to prise the Big Wicket. Tanvir was looking to flick this through the leg side, but gets a leading edge which carries low to backward point, who takes a good catch. They are checking for the no-ball and it appears as though he had over-stepped, but he has got a little bit of his foot behind the line, so it should be given out. And the umpire confirms the decision as Tanvir walks off, but not before scoring a fine 41 at No. 9, the highest T20 score at that position. Wonderful effort from the left-armer

Sohail Tanvir c Prasanna b Malinga 41 (46m 26b 5x4 1x6) SR: 157.69

18.3
0
Malinga to Sohail Tanvir, no run, bang on target as Tanvir ends up hitting it back to Malinga. Excellent over thus far with just one from it

Azhar: "reached home from ground and Shocked to see the score in TV. OMG..!!"

18.2
0
Malinga to Sohail Tanvir, no run, much better from Malinga as he brings it slightly closer in, with Tanvir unable to get a connection on it
18.2
1w
Malinga to Sohail Tanvir, 1 wide, looking to bowl it full and wide in an attempt to curtail the runs but messes up the line as wide is called
18.1
0
Malinga to Sohail Tanvir, no run, Malinga fires this one outside off and full as Tanvir reaches over in an attempt to lap this over fine leg, but can't get any bat on it

29 off 12 needed. Are we in for another thriller?

END OF OVER:
18 | 12 Runs | PAK: 183/8 (29 runs required from 12 balls, RR: 10.16, RRR: 14.50)

  • Saeed Ajmal20 (14b)
  • Sohail Tanvir41 (22b)
  • Thisara Perera3-0-36-2
  • Lasith Malinga3-0-28-0

Adnan Rasheed: "I m glad to see Pakistan fighting.....its good to see after a long time"

17.6
2
NLTC Perera to Saeed Ajmal, 2 runs, low full toss and Ajmal has the presence of mind to paddle this over backward square leg, but can not beat fine leg
17.5
6
NLTC Perera to Saeed Ajmal, SIX, slower ball and this backfires in a huge way as Ajmal sees it early to slam this over the midwicket boundary for a huge six. Euphoria from the remaining Pakistan crowd.
17.4
1
NLTC Perera to Sohail Tanvir, 1 run, another full toss and Tanvir hits this straight over long-on. His timing seems off now.

This is the highest score by a No. 9 in T20s. Tanvir doing the deed admirably

faisal bajwa: "Maybe the Pakistan supporters should come back into the ground"

17.3
2
NLTC Perera to Sohail Tanvir, 2 runs, no one in the deep as Tanvir plays a pick-up shot to this full toss, over the leg side, but doesn't time it sweetly enough to get to the rope
17.2
1
NLTC Perera to Saeed Ajmal, 1 run, length ball this time as Ajmal clubs this over midwicket to the waiting fielder
17.1
0
NLTC Perera to Saeed Ajmal, no run, fuller length ball outside off as Ajmal plays this straight to silly mid-off

This is now the highest ninth-wicket T20I partnership ever

END OF OVER:
17 | 20 Runs | PAK: 171/8 (41 runs required from 18 balls, RR: 10.05, RRR: 13.66)

  • Sohail Tanvir38 (20b)
  • Saeed Ajmal11 (10b)
  • Lasith Malinga3-0-28-0
  • Nuwan Kulasekara3-0-21-1

Aqdam: "So glad to see pakistan fighting....."

16.6
4
Malinga to Sohail Tanvir, FOUR, too full and shaping in as Tanvir is able to clear his front leg to heave this over midwicket, beating long-on to the rope. Malinga's over ends up giving up 20 runs. Really does struggle in the end overs, doesn't he?
16.6
2nb
Malinga to Saeed Ajmal, (no ball) 1 run, shorter one going down the leg side and again he oversteps as fine leg completes the catch, but it didn't account for anything. We have another free hit on the cards
16.6
2nb
Malinga to Sohail Tanvir, (no ball) 1 run, zeroing in on the pads as Tanvir is able to work this off his pads. Called no-ball by the umpire, so Pakistan are afforded an extra delivery, and more importantly, a free hit
16.5
1
Malinga to Saeed Ajmal, 1 run, slower ball on off as Tanvir is able to guide this down to third man for a single
16.4
2
Malinga to Saeed Ajmal, 2 runs, Ajmal flicks this slower one on middle and leg over midwicket, with the pair running hard enough to complete two

Faiz H: "I don't know on what basis Hafeez decided to bowl first."

16.3
1
Malinga to Sohail Tanvir, 1 run, full toss this time and Tanvir looks to hammer this over the leg side, but hits this straight to Chandimal, who runs backwards and dives with an outstretched left hand, but can't hold on to it
16.2
4
Malinga to Sohail Tanvir, FOUR, full again and this time Tanvir flicks over midwicket. With this one rising high enough that even the cameraman had trouble spotting it. This one flies over to deep midwicket, just landing inside the rope
16.1
4
Malinga to Sohail Tanvir, FOUR, too full and wide and Tanvir lofts this over extra-cover for a boundary. Good start to the over for Pakistan

Malinga back on. Has two overs left

END OF OVER:
16 | 5 Runs | PAK: 151/8 (61 runs required from 24 balls, RR: 9.43, RRR: 15.25)

  • Sohail Tanvir24 (15b)
  • Saeed Ajmal7 (7b)
  • Nuwan Kulasekara3-0-21-1
  • Sachithra Senanayake4-0-27-3

Sohail H: "Pakistan seem to have leaked 25 too many runs that may be the final deficit for the team."

15.6
1
Kulasekara to Sohail Tanvir, 1 run, full again outside off as Tanvir drives this hard to long-on

Pakistan 2nd innings Partnerships

WktRunsPlayers
1st18Sharjeel KhanAhmed Shehzad
2nd9Mohammad HafeezSharjeel Khan
3rd35Sohaib MaqsoodSharjeel Khan
4th21Sharjeel KhanUmar Akmal
5th1Shahid AfridiUmar Akmal
6th1Shahid AfridiUmar Amin
7th0Shahid AfridiBilawal Bhatti
8th36Shahid AfridiSohail Tanvir
9th63Saeed AjmalSohail Tanvir
10th3Saeed AjmalUsman Shinwari