Sidra Ameen and Bismah Maroof clinch win against Sri Lanka

Pakistan won the match against Sri Lanka with 49 balls to spare, thanks to a 143-run partnership between Sidra Ameen (76) and Bismah Maroof (62*). The women in green won the match by eight wickets, defeating Sri Lanka women 169 for all out (Dilhari 49, Fatima 4-21).

After Sri Lanka were bowled out for 169, the hitters made light work of the chase, reaching the target with 8.1 overs to spare. Ghulam Fatima displayed a brilliant spell of four wickets for 21 runs. Pakistan’s batting performance featured a 143-run stand between Ameen and Maroof, with Ameen being dismissed two runs shy of victory, while Maroof went undefeated with 62 runs.

Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat but got off to a poor start and lost Hasini Perera to a run-out in the early overs. The lethargy that gripped Sri Lanka in the final T20I showed no signs of abating. Chamari Athapaththu and Hansima Karunaratne revamped the scoreboard, but their hard work was undone as the match proceeded. 

Prasadani Weerakkody and Nilakshi de Silva put up a 50-run partnership, hitting regular boundaries and increasing the run rate. Just when it appeared that Sri Lanka was erecting a platform Pakistan’s Ghulam and Iqbal struck yet again, removing the settled pair within three balls of each other, 

The very next delivery, Ghulam knocked over Oshadi Ranasinghe’s stumps, and left Sri Lanka at 96 for six. Kavisha Dilhari's airy, languid stroke play helped her side pile up important runs, providing herself and her bowling partners a semblance of a competitive total to bowl at. Maroof and Diana Baig were each shown the long handle after two fours off Iqbal set the tone.

As Dilhari approached a well-deserved half-century, Nida Dar was blasted for six, but she ran out of partners as Fatima Sana wrapped up the tail at the other end. Leaving Dilhari stranded on an undefeated 50-ball 49. The Sri Lankan defence got off to a bad start, as Kumari opened with five wides before dispatching the first legal delivery for four.

It looked like a speedy finish was on the cards, but Sri Lanka reacted with their greatest period of play, putting Pakistan on the back foot throughout the powerplay. Muneeba Ali's wicket was picked up off a top-edge delivered by Achini Kulasuriya.

That may have increased the strain on Pakistan, though neither Ameen nor Maroof showed it. In the tenth over, Ameen executed a pair of beautiful successive covers drives for four, which appeared to break the shackles for Pakistan once and for all. With two boundaries in the 13th over, Maroof got in on the act, and even the asking rate was falling.

The Sri Lankan tried seam and spin but couldn't maintain the discipline that they had in the early overs. The lines were skewed, the lengths didn't penetrate, and the intensity couldn't be turned up high enough. A low total became less daunting with each run, and for much of the closing hour, it was more of a procession than a pursuit. Maroof's 16th ODI half-century, together with Ameen's fourth, helped to solidify Pakistan's domination, implying that Pakistan's T20I advantage has carried over into the ODI series.