SL vs AFG: De Silva slams his ninth ODI fifty
What's the story
Sri Lanka all-rounder Dhananjaya de Silva came up with a timely half-century against Afghanistan in the first of the three-match ODI series in Hambantota.
Dhananjaya smashed his ninth ODI fifty (51 off 59 balls) and stitched a very important partnership with Charith Asalanka to guide the hosts to safer shores after a scrappy start.
He helped SL post a competitive 268.
Here's more.
Knock
A fine hand from Dhananjaya
Dhananjaya's knock of 51 runs came at a time when SL were struggling to find any rhythm in their innings at 84/4.
He stitched a 99-run partnership along with Asalanka (91), taking the hosts beyond the 180-run mark.
He slapped five fours and brought up his fifty off just 55 deliveries.
Dhananjaya was dismissed by Mohammad Nabi in the 38th over.
Stats
A look at his ODI numbers
The 31-year-old has raced to 1,457 runs in 67 ODI appearances at an average of 26.49.
More than half of his runs have come at home. He has amassed 762 runs in 32 matches at 28.22 at home.
While five out of the nine fifties have also come here.
He has scored 95 runs against Afghanistan in six matches (50s: 1).
Information
Did you know?
This is Dhananjaya's first ODI fifty at the Mahindra Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium in Hambantota. He has played two matches here and has compiled 63 runs at an average of 31.50. He is yet to pick up a wicket here in ODIs.
Summary
Here's how the SL inning panned out
Afghanistan won the toss and invited SL to bat first.
The hosts had a scrappy start to their innings, losing three wickets in the first 15 overs.
However, Asalanka and Dhananjaya stitched a 99-run partnership to steady the ship.
Both batters slammed fifties, guiding SL to a competitive total of 268.
Fazalhaq Farooqi and Fareed Ahmad picked up two wickets each.