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Rizwan, Iftikhar rescue act lifts Pakistan to competitive total
A phenomenal rescue act from Mohammad Rizwan and Ifthikar Ahmed lifted Pakistan to 252 in 42 overs in a rain-affected first innings in Colombo. Pakistan, who looked comfortable at one stage, struggled with a top-order collapse after the dismissals of Babar Azam and Abdullah Shafique, but were rescued from a precarious 130-5 after the rain break by Rizwan and Iftikhar.
After the match was (initially) reduced to 45 overs a side, and delayed by nearly two hours, Pakistan boldly opted to bat first on a wicket that would potentially be tacky, skiddy or unpredictable due to the extra moisture. The openers were circumspect to start with, and went at an alarmingly slow rate before Fakhar Zaman was knocked over by a fast, full and swinging delivery from Pramod Madushan. Babar Azam and Abdullah Shafique attempted a recovery, and played some exquisite strokes as the wicket started to gain a little more pace and the ball started to come onto the bat.
Shafique survived an LBW review against Wellalage, as the ball was only clipping leg-stump, and was struck for a six off the very next ball. However, the stubborn Sri Lankan got his revenge soon after, foxing Babar Azam and getting him stumped. Shafique followed soon after getting to his maiden ODI fifty, pulling one down the throat of Pramod at the deep square leg boundary. The wicket of Shafique, however, triggered a collapse.
Mohammad Haris was the first to go, deceived by the lack of pace from Pathirana, handing him a simple return catch. Nawaz was done in by the Theekshana off-break that beat him to topple over his stumps. The wicket of Nawaz brought about another rain break, after which, the overs were reduced by a further three, to 42 overs a side, and Pakistan had collapsed from 73-1 to 130-5.
Ifthikar Ahmed and Mohammad Rizwan put together a commendable stand in an attempt to lead a recovery for Pakistan. A Pramod over, where he struggled with two wides and a no-ball and ended up bowling nine balls, went for 18 runs, which really changed the momentum of the innings, as Pakistan roared back into the match after the rain delay. A flurry of fours and sixes ensued, and not even Sri Lanka’s lethal weapon, Matheesha Pathirana could stem the haemorrhage of runs.
Iftikhar Ahmed departed for 47 after a 108-run stand with Rizwan, but the pair had done their job. Shadab Khan was caught behind, courtesy a screamer of a catch by wicketkeeper Kusal Mendis, but Pakistan finished with a competitive 252 after 42 overs.
Brief Scores:
Pakistan 252-7 in 42 overs (Mohammad Rizwan 86*, Abdullah Shaique 52, Matheesha Pathirana 3-65) vs Sri Lanka
(Cricbuzz)
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More than 360 dead, 1,400 missing in Nepal and Tibet after Himalayan floods
Some 360 bodies have been recovered and more than 1,400 people are missing across Nepal and China’s Tibet region after a huge collapse of mud and rock into a Himalayan river triggered catastrophic flooding across local towns and valleys, authorities have said.
Rescue teams waded through mud on Thursday searching for the missing, as authorities in Nepal said at least 359 people have been killed there.
At least three people have died in the neighbouring Tibet region.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrived at the mudslide site in Tibet on Thursday afternoon to “guide emergency rescue and relief work” a day after the disaster, state media reported.
Nepalese police and tourism officials said that more than 500 foreigners were among 910 people missing in Nepal.
Among the missing are tourists from more than two dozen countries: 177 are from India, 63 from the United States, 34 from Australia, 33 from the United Kingdom, and 25 from Canada.
Beijing’s foreign ministry also said nearly 100 Chinese nationals were among the missing in Nepal.
In Tibet’s Gyirong county, 558 people are reported missing, including 260 foreign nationals, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
Search and rescue operations are proving to be a “massive challenge” as just simply “getting to the affected areas … to try and recover the survivors”, is proving to be extremely difficult as the roads and bridges there have suffered extensive damage, said Al Jazeera’s Minelle Fernandez, reporting from the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu.
[Aljazeera]
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Unyielding Dinusha, spirited tail hold off India to save Colombo Test
India 503/9 decl (Devdutt Padikkal 117, Dhruv Jurel 115; Asitha Fernando 4-106, Prabath Jayasuriya 2-132) drew with Sri Lanka 290 (Sonal Dinusha 103, Pasindu Sooriyabandara 80; Prasidh Krishna 3-52, Manav Suthar 3-85) and 429/9 f/o (Sonal Dinusha 133*, Pasindu Sooriyabandara 92; Ravindra Jadeja 3-94, Manav Suthar 3-121)
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UAE’s Asif Khan handed 15-month ban for using a banned substance
Asif Khan the UAE batter, has been banned for 15 months after admitting to having tested positive for a banned substance – “a metabolite of mesterolone” – in an out-of-competition test conducted in September 2025, the ICC said in a statement on Thursday.
The statement said that Asif, 36, “had admitted the violation” of Article 2.1 of the ICC’s anti-doping code and accepted the period of ineligibility “pursuant to a case resolution agreement entered into with the World Anti-Doping Agency and the ICC”, which means there is no right to appeal on the part of the player.
The sanction is effective from September 8, 2025 and will run until December 7, 2026.
“Asif may return to training with a team or use the facilities of a club or other ICC Member organisation from 8 October 2026 but will only be eligible to play from 8 December,” the statement added. “The player’s individual results from 8 September 2025 until his provisional suspension on 29 December 2025 have been disqualified, along with all resulting consequences, including the loss of any medals, points, prize money or prizes.”
Asif, a former Pakistan Under-19 cricketer, made his UAE debut in March 2022 in an ODI against Oman in the ICC’s Cricket World Cup League 2. He turned out in 38 ODIs and 56 T20Is between then and September 2025.
The last three of those T20Is, against India, Oman and Pakistan in the T20 Asia Cup in 2025, came after September 8, and will be removed from his record.
[Cricinfo]
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