Maaz Sadaqat crashed 96 off 51,Sahibzada Farhan clobbered 73 off 44, and Pakistan scorched their way through the last 12 overs of their innings to mount a fearsome total of 215 for 3. Pakistan reaped 156 runs just in the last 12 overs of their innings, as a 73-run stand between Sadaqat and Farhan was followed by a manic 72-run partnership between Sadaqat and Hasan Nawaz.

Sri Lanka’s batting was woeful in response. They slumped to 64 for 5 by the 11th over, with none of their top seven managing to get to 30. They limped to 133 for 7, having had their hopes of leveling the series wrecked by quicks Mohammad Imran and Salman Mirza, who took five wickets between them.

Sadaqat propels Pakistan into the stratosphere

The openers had laid a decent platform with Pakistan having got to 55 for 1 by the end of the seventh over. But it was Sadaqat who injected the energy that truly set Pakistan on course to their mammoth total. Having gone at less than a run a ball in his first eight balls, Sadaqat unleashed a spectacular lofted square drive off Eshan Malinga to collect his first six, before pumping the same bowler down the ground later in the 10th over.

Sadaqat would go on to clobber six further sixes and five further fours. The big hits tended to come down the ground, while his fours were more square of the wicket. Of the 125 runs Pakistan plundered in the second half of their innings, 79 off 40 came from Sadaqat, who pummeled both pace and spin with equal relish. Off the sixteenth over, bowled by Maheesh Theekshana, Sadaqat thumped three sixes in the arc between long on and midwicket.

Sadaqat, whose previous top score in three T20Is had been 50, could have gone to triple figures off the last ball of the innings, but holed out to deep cover instead, unable to quite find the power to lift a Malinga slower ball over the ropes. He had utterly dominated the middle and late overs, however.

Captain Rahmat Shah played a crucial knock as he held Afghaniistan  together on the second day in Abu Dhabi. He blunted Bangladesh’s  threat by adding 72 runs for the unbroken fifth wicket with his deputy Ikram Alikhil.

Rahmat was unbeaten on 84 off 186 balls with eight fours and a six, while Alikhil’s 26 came off 91 balls. Ebadot Hossain was Bangladesh’s best bowler of the day.

Bangladesh wicketkeeper Litton Das got his side back into the contest shortly after the tea break. He first took a brilliant diving catch to his right, when the set Abdul Malik edged Ebadot five balls into the third session. Malik made 62 off 120 balls, with five boundaries including a six.

Next over, Litton completed a fine stumping when a Mehidy Hasan Miraz delivery turned and bounced sharply against Hashmatullah Shahidi. The former Afghanistan captain lasted just two balls as he fell for a duck.

Alikhil started with two well-timed boundaries before reining himself in for the next nine overs. Rahmat broke the boundary drought with two fours off Nayeem Hasan in the 60th over. He first pumped the offspinner through midwicket before finding the gap through mid-off for the second four.

Afghanistan then held off the Bangladesh bowling for the next 17 overs without a single boundary. Finally in the 77th over, Rahmat struck Mehidy for two fours in a row, both superb shots through extra cover, as he brought up Afghanistan’s 200.

The day began with the Afghanistan pace bowlers removing the two remaining Bangladesh wickets. It took them 8.3 overs, with Mohammad Saleem picking up his fourth wicket, having Taijul Islam caught behind and Yamin Ahmadzai removing Ebadot with a slower delivery.

Saleem finished with 4 for 82, having taken 6 for 140 against India in Afghanistan’s previous Test in June. Ahmadzai took three and Ismat Alam two wickets. This was the first time a fast bowling attack took nine wickets in a Test innings in Abu Dhabi.

After bowling out Bangladesh for 346, Afghanistan went to lunch on 34 for 1. Sediqullah Atal edged Hasan Mahmud to first slip. Atal struck three fours in his knock but also survived a caught-behind appeal in the third over. Replays showed that he had inside-edged it but Bangladesh did not use the review.

After lunch, Afghanistan batted positively. Shahidullah swept Mehidy while Mahmud conceded two fours early. Malik played the ball confidently, but Bangladesh kept things tight from both ends. It created a wicket when Shahidullah top-edged a hook against Ebadot in the 21st over. Mahmud took a good tumbling catch running in from fine-leg, as Shahidullah fell for 20 off 44 balls.

Rahmat though immediately stamped his authority with a crunchy cover drive in the same over. He hit Taijul for a straight six shortly afterwards, with Malik repeating the dose to the same bowler after a few more overs. Malik also cover-drove Nayeem before reaching his maiden Test half-century in the 34th over.

Scores:
Afghanistan 211 for 4 in 80.5 overs (Abdul Malik 62, Rahmat Shah 84*, Ikram Alkhi 32*;  Ebadot Hossain  2-50) trail Bangladesh 346 in 92.3 overs (Shadman Islam 67, Tanzid Hasan 83, Litton Das 53; Mohammad Saleem 4-82, Yamim Ahmadzai 3-79, Ismat Alam 2-20) by 135 runs

[Cricinfo]

Risindi Hewawasam of Sri Lanka and Anthony Castigador of the Philippines won the girls’ and boys’ singles titles at the ATF 16 & Under Colombo 2026 – Week 1 tournament concluded at the Sri Lanka Tennis Association courts on Friday.

‎‎Castigador produced a dominant performance in the boys’ singles final, defeating India’s Gurshaan Chahal 6-2, 6-2 to secure the title. The Filipino maintained his advantage throughout the match, winning in straight sets to cap an impressive campaign.

Risindi Hewawasam (Pix by Kamal Wanniarachchi)

‎‎In the girls’ singles final, Risindi delivered an equally dominant display to beat compatriot Kiara Jayamanne 6-1, 6-1. (RF)