Sri Lankan cricketer Oshada Fernando made his T20I debut on last Wednesday (9th October) night and put himself to the special position in T20I history with his brilliant batting performance.
Sri Lanka and the hosts Pakistan played the third and final match of the T20I series on Wednesday night at Gaddafi Stadium (Lahore). Pakistan already disappointed in this series by losing the first two matches of this T20I series. Though they had no chance to save the T20I series, it was a pride-saviour game for Pakistan but they suffered another defeat. Sri Lanka won that game by 13 runs and completed the whitewash (3-0).
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Oshada Fernando scored 78* runs on his T20I debut
In that final T20I of this series, Sri Lanka batted first after winning the toss but only scored 147/7 (20 overs). T20I debutant Oshada Fernando was the only shining part of Sri Lanka’s batting as he only managed to reach the 20-run mark. He came to bat at no.5 position when Sri Lanka were struggling on 30/3.
Fernando completed his half-century in 33 balls and stretched that innings for further. His brilliant batting helped the visitors to manage the fighting total. At the end of that innings, Fernando scored unbeaten 78 runs off 48 balls (8 fours and 3 sixes).
Coming to bat at no.5 or lower in T20I debut, it is the highest individual score. The previous record in this list was 68* by Craig Williams (Namibia) against Botswana at Windhoek on 19th August 2019.
Also, the 27-year-old Oshada Fernando became the first Sri Lankan T20I debutant to register a 50+ score. Meanwhile, it is the seventh highest individual score by a T20I debutant.
Among the Pakistan bowlers, the left-arm pacer Mohammad Amir was the best bowler. He had the bowling figures of 4-0-27-3.
Pakistan only managed to score 134/6
In reply, Pakistan opener Fakhar Zaman (0) lost his wicket on the first ball of that innings. However, another opener Babar Azam handled that early situation in a better way along with Haris Sohail. They had a 76-run partnership for the second wicket before the no.1-ranked T20I batsman Babar lost his wicket on 27 runs.
Haris Sohail completed his half-century in 46 balls. However, in a crucial time, Haris was out on 52 runs off 50 balls (4 fours and only six) through the stumped. None other Pakistan players reached the 20-run mark as they only managed to score 134/6 (20 overs).
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Sri Lankan leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga won the Player of the Match award for his impressive bowling performance. He finished with the bowling figures of 4-0-21-3. Hasaranga also won the Player of the Series award after finishing as the leading wicket-taker in this series. He took eight wickets in this series after playing three matches (average 9.87).