Afghanistan, who elected to field first, picked up three wickets within two overs to push Sri Lanka on the back foot. Left-arm seamer Fazalhaq Farooqi dismissed Kusal Mendis and Charith Asalanka before Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Chamika Karunartne dragged their side to 105.
Speaking after the comprehensive defeat, the all-rounder questioned whether the Sri Lankan batters were ready for Farooqi and Naveen-ul-Haq as the conditions in the UAE differ from those back home.
Shanaka, who registered a first-ball duck, said the pitch was good, but the top-order batters failed to capitalize on that.
He said, as quoted by ESPN Cricinfo:
Afghanistan’s batting was equally dominant as Hazratullah Zazai and Rahmanullah Gurbaz slammed 83 in 6.1 overs. Wanindu Hasaranga was the sole wicket-taker, while Maheesh Theekshna ran Ibrahim Zadran out.
“You’ve got to be able to bat in any conditions” - Dasun Shanaka
Shanaka admitted that losing early wickets made it hard to get back in the game and that there are no excuses for poor batting performance. He added:
Sri Lanka next face Bangladesh in a must-win game on September 1 in Dubai, while Afghanistan will lock horns with Bangladesh on Tuesday (August 30) in Sharjah.
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