PAK vs SL, 2nd T20I: Reassured Sri Lanka aim to maintain consistency against jolted Pakistan

To stage a comeback and level the series in the second T20I, Pakistan will need a strong performance from their top four, led by the dynamic Babar Azam.

Lahore: After thrashing Pakistan by 64 runs in the opening match of the three-match T20I series, Sri Lanka will aim to claim the tournament when they take on a jolted Green Shirts for the second game, here at the Gaddafi Stadium.

The second T20I between Sri Lanka and Pakistan will kick-start at 07:00 pm on Monday and the toss will take place at 6:30 pm local.

In the first T20I, Sri Lankan opener Danushka Gunathalika smashed a brilliant 57-run knock as the visitors posted 165 runs for the loss of five wickets in their allotted 20 overs. Chasing the modest total, Sri Lanka bundled out Pakistan for 101 runs in 18th over to register an emphatic 64-run win.

The Islanders will aim to continue their winning momentum when they take on Pakistan in Gaddafi stadium to seal the series in the second game.

The only positive for Pakistan in the T20I tournament opener was Mohammad Hansnain, who bagged a hat-trick in second last over to halt Sri Lanka's progress. However, Pakistan's batting performance is major headache for their skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed as veterans Ahmed Shehzad and Umar Akmal failed to leave a mark in their comeback match.

To stage a comeback and level the series in the second T20I, Pakistan will need a strong performance from their top four, led by the dynamic Babar Azam.

Speaking after losing the first T20I, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Pakistan captain said: "In T20s we can't take any team lightly. Credit to them, they kept it tight with the ball and in the field in the middle overs. We didn't have a good day with the ball, but at one stage it looked like they would get to 170-180 and Hasnain brought us back well. God willing, we'll do well in the next game."

Sri Lankan skipper Dasun Shanaka said: "It's a great achievement without our top guns to beat them here. Our openers did a tremendous job for us. We had belief that once all the boys perform we'll win games."

Teams:

Pakistan Squad: Babar Azam, Ahmed Shehzad, Umar Akmal, Sarfaraz Ahmed(w/c), Iftikhar Ahmed, Asif Ali, Imad Wasim, Faheem Ashraf, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Hasnain, Haris Sohail, Mohammad Nawaz, Usman Shinwari, Fakhar Zaman, Wahab Riaz

Sri Lanka Squad: Danushka Gunathilaka, Avishka Fernando, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dasun Shanaka(c), Shehan Jayasuriya, Isuru Udana, Wanindu Hasaranga, Minod Bhanuka(w), Lakshan Sandakan, Kasun Rajitha, Nuwan Pradeep, Angelo Perera, Lahiru Madushanka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Lahiru Kumara, Oshada Fernando