Pathum Nissanka smokes his second ODI fifty versus India
Sri Lanka's batting sensation Pathum Nissanka continued his golden run in ODIs. He smoked a fine half-century in the series opener against India at Colombo's R.Premadasa Stadium. The opener batted well amid tough circumstances and scored 56 off 75 balls. He hammered nine fours en route to his second ODI fifty against the Indian team. Here are his stats.
A fine hand from Nissanka
Batting first, SL's top order faltered as four of their top five batters couldn't even touch the 15-run mark. Nissanka, however, continued to bat well at one end. He was aggressive in the powerplay overs before slowing down due to the fall of wickets. Off-spinner Washington Sundar eventually trapped him lbw as he departed with the scorecard reading 101/5.
Here are his ODI numbers
Having played 56 ODIs since his debut in March 2021, the opener has raced to 2,281 runs at an average of 44.72. As per ESPNcricinfo, this was his 14th ODI fifty while he has smashed six tons in this format. Earlier this year, Nissanka became the first SL batter to hammer a double-hundred in ODI cricket. He scored a match-winning 210* versus Afghanistan.
Highest average for a SL batter
Nissanka's batting average of 44.72 is the best for a SL batter with 500 or more ODI runs. As per ESPNcricinfo, Nissanka now owns 1,116 runs in 22 home ODIs at an average of 53.14. He has registered three tons and six fifties at home. In five games versus India, he now has 136 runs at 27.20 (50s: 2).
