Farhan stars on captaincy debut in Rawalpindi

RAWALPINDI – Newly appointed captain Sahibzada Farhan led from the front on Friday, striking 89 off 53 balls with ten fours and four sixes as Pakistan chased down 183 in 18.5 overs to win the first T20I against Sri Lanka by four wickets.

Farhan sets the tone

Farhan and Fakhar Zaman raced to 54 without loss in five overs before Farhan was caught in the deep. Maaz Sadaqat then reached fifty in only 28 balls and added 92 with the captain, breaking Sri Lanka's resistance. Hasan Nawaz and Saim Ayub fell cheaply, but the chase never lost momentum. Mohammad Imran also made his T20I debut. Farhan has described the squad as a mix of youngsters and comebacks, especially Fakhar and Shadab.

Udara's record knock

Sri Lanka, batting first, posted 182 for eight thanks to opener Lahiru Udara's 91 off 55 balls, the highest T20I score by a Sri Lankan against Pakistan, surpassing Kusal Perera's 84 in Dubai in 2013. Dasun Shanaka added 57 with Udara for the fifth wicket, but the visitors lost three wickets in five balls late in the innings.

Also Read: Farhan says captaincy of Pakistan T20 team a proud moment

New captain, new era

Farhan replaced Salman Agha as T20I captain after leading Pakistan to silver at the Asian Games, making him the country's third T20 skipper in as many years, according to the Associated Press. The fixture was also the 250th international between the two sides. The remaining matches were scheduled for October 11 and 13 at the same venue, followed by an ODI tri-series with England and Sri Lanka from October 18.