Sharjah, Apr 04: Yousuf Youhana and Younis Khan overcame a stubborn resistance from Sri Lanka to guide Pakistan to a seven-wicket victory here today, its second successive win in the four-nation one-day tournament.
Youhana and Younis Khan rode on their luck to hit unbeaten half-centuries and take their side past Sri Lanka's 223 for six which was built around a maiden unbeaten ton by Kumara Sangakkara. Pakistan, who had beaten Zimbabwe in the inaugural match of the tournament yesterday, finished with 225 for three with 16 balls to spare. Yousuf and Younis came together at the score of 101 in the 29th over in which Pakistan saw two of its set batsmen being run out. Youhana, who was dropped by Jehan Mubarak in the 31st over quite early in his innings, made the Sri Lankans pay dearly for their mistake, scoring 64 not out. Younis Khan too survived a few close calls before settling down to play a fine knock and finish with 57 not out. Earlier, Sangakkara hit 100 not out to ensure a respectable score for his team after skipper Sanath Jayasuriya won the toss and elected to bat. Sangakkara kept Sri Lanka going despite the regular loss of wickets as none of the other batsmen could offer much support to him.

Bureau Report