Asia Cup: Afghanistan's Gulbadin Naib claims 4/60 against Sri Lanka
Former Afghanistan captain Gulbadin Naib was the pick of the bowlers against Sri Lanka in match number six of the 2023 Asia Cup. The veteran all-rounder finished with 4/60 from his quota of 10 overs as SL posted a fighting total of 291/8 from their allocated 50 overs. This was Naib's third four-wicket haul in ODI cricket. Here we decode his stats.
A fantastic spell from Naib
Naib came into the attack in the eighth over and he removed Dimuth Karunaratne in the 10th over, breaking the 63-run partnership. He dismissed Pathum Nissanka, who handed a catch straight to the point fielder. Naib then caught the outside edge of Sadeera Samarawickrama's bat to scalp his third wicket. He later returned in the slog overs as he knocked over Maheesh Theekshana.
A look at his ODI stats
Playing his 79th ODI, Naib has raced to 72 wickets at an average of 34.05. Besides three four-wicket hauls, he also owns a solitary fifer. The all-rounder maintains an economy rate of 5.45 in this format. Naib's best bowling figures of 6/43 came against Ireland in 2019 at Belfast. Overall, he has scalped 10 wickets against SL in seven ODIs at 22.80.
Summary of the SL innings
SL were off to a good start as the openers added 63 runs. Naib removed both of them as they lost a couple of quick wickets. Kusal Mendis and Charith Asalanka stitched a 102-run partnership to steady the ship. Later, Theekshana and Dunith Wellage added 64 runs for the eighth wicket as SL posted a total of 291/8. Naib starred for Afghanistan with 4/60.
