Sri Lanka vs. Pakistan, 1st One-Day International: Highlights, Scorecard, Recap
Mohammad Hafeez's excellent century saw Pakistan easily chase down a target of 256 set by Sri Lanka in Dambulla on Saturday to win the first of five one-day internationals between the two by six wickets.
Hafeez had been Pakistan's most effective bowler as he took four Sri Lankan wickets as the hosts finished on 255 for eight, Dinesh Chandimal top-scoring with 65.
The No. 3 batsman then took control in Pakistan's innings and batted his side toward victory, with the visitors eventually winning with more than four overs remaining.
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Pakistan won the toss and put Sri Lanka into bat. Kusal Perera and Tillakaratne Dilshan both made starts and put on 44 together before the former edged into the slips in the ninth over off the bowling of Hafeez.
Making starts was very much the order of the day for the hosts, as Lahiru Thirimanne and Upul Tharanga also both fell in the 20s.
Dilshan made it to 30, but lived something of a charmed life, per Cricbuzz:
The opener eventually fell for 38, bowled by Hafeez's spin for his third wicket of the match to leave Sri Lanka 118 for 4 in the 27th over.
Skipper Angelo Mathews and Chandimal steadied the ship somewhat as they put on 82 together to take Sri Lanka to 200.
Mathews holed out to long-on off Yasir Shah for 38, but Chandimal stayed in, scoring at a decent rate and continuing with the tail after Thisara Perera became Hafeez's fourth victim after just three balls at the crease.
Milinda Siriwardana helped out with a useful 21-ball 22 and Chandimal finished unbeaten on 65 as Sri Lanka posted a defendable 255 for eight from their 50 overs.
| Batsman | Dismissal | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR |
| Kusal Perera | c M Rizwan b M Hafeez | 26 | 35 | 4 | 0 | 74.3 |
| Tillakaratne Dilshan | b M Hafeez | 38 | 65 | 2 | 0 | 58.5 |
| Lahiru Thirimanne | c S Ahmed b A Ali | 23 | 23 | 2 | 1 | 100.0 |
| Upul Tharanga | st S Ahmed b M Hafeez | 20 | 27 | 2 | 0 | 74.1 |
| Angelo Mathews (c) | c Babar Azam b Yasir Shah | 38 | 54 | 5 | 0 | 70.4 |
| Dinesh Chandimal (wk) | not out | 65 | 68 | 5 | 1 | 95.6 |
| Thisara Perera | c M Rizwan b M Hafeez | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 33.3 |
| Milinda Siriwardana | c M Rizwan b Rahat Ali | 22 | 21 | 2 | 1 | 104.8 |
| Seekkuge Prasanna | c M Hafeez b Rahat Ali | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Lasith Malinga | not out | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100.0 |
| Extras | 18 | (b - 4 w - 6, nb - 1, lb - 7) | ||||
| Bowler | O | M | R | W | Nb | Wd |
| Mohammad Irfan | 10 | 0 | 41 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Rahat Ali | 8 | 0 | 44 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Anwar Ali | 7 | 0 | 38 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Mohammad Hafeez | 10 | 1 | 41 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| Yasir Shah | 10 | 0 | 46 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Shoaib Malik | 5 | 0 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Pakistan's openers Azhar Ali and Ahmed Shehzad befell the same fate as their Sri Lankan counterparts as they both got starts, before being caught behind in the 20s.
The first dismissal from Mathews, though, brought Hafeez to the wicket, and as well as he had performed with the ball, his batting was arguably even better.
His wonderful knock of 103 came from 95 balls, and saw Pakistan keep up with the required run rate as they looked to win the opening ODI of the five-match series.
Hafeez's innings included four massive sixes and 10 fours as he played each of Sri Lanka's bowlers with remarkable ease.
Babar Azam chipped in with a competent 25 before he was trapped lbw square in front of his stumps by Dilshan.
| Batsman | Dismissal | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR |
| Azhar Ali (c) | c Chandimal b Mathews | 21 | 29 | 3 | 0 | 72.4 |
| Ahmed Shehzad | c Chandimal b Lakmal | 29 | 39 | 4 | 0 | 74.4 |
| Mohammad Hafeez | c & b T Perera | 103 | 95 | 10 | 4 | 108.4 |
| Babar Azam | lbw b Dilshan | 25 | 30 | 3 | 0 | 83.3 |
| Shoaib Malik | not out | 55 | 45 | 4 | 2 | 122.2 |
| Mohammad Rizwan | not out | 20 | 34 | 2 | 0 | 58.8 |
| Extras | 6 | (b - 0 w - 5, nb - 0, lb - 1) | ||||
| Bowler | O | M | R | W | Nb | Wd |
| Lasith Malinga | 8 | 0 | 56 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Suranga Lakmal | 5 | 1 | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Thisara Perera | 8 | 0 | 32 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Angelo Mathews | 5 | 0 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Seekkuge Prasanna | 9 | 0 | 72 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tillakaratne Dilshan | 8.2 | 0 | 45 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Milinda Siriwardana | 2 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Shoaib Malik joined Hafeez at the crease and let the man in form take the majority of the strike as he cruised toward his century.
He brought the ton up with a boundary before duly top-edging a slapped pull back to bowler Thisara Perera for a rather weak dismissal.
However, it was a fine innings, and he left the crease with Pakistan firmly in control at 198 for four in the 36th over.
Malik and new batsman Mohammad Rizwan batted sensibly to take Pakistan over the line with 28 balls to spare, the former winning the game with a six. It was a key win for Pakistan who take control in a series they must win if they want to qualify for 2017's ICC Champions Trophy.
Wednesday will see the second ODI of the series in Pallekele, and Pakistan have all the momentum after a fine win in Dambulla.
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