Pakistan leg-spinner Yasir Shah, who returned to playing Tests, took fans back to the year 1990 as he produced a Shane Warne-like ‘Ball of the Century’ to dismiss Kusal Mendis during Day 3 of the opening Test against Sri Lanka on Monday. Shah, who last played Test cricket in August last year, made a strong comeback for his country with a rip-roaring delivery that brought back memories of the late great Warne.
Shane Warne had risen to success with the unforgettable special delivery to dismiss England great Mike Gatting during the 1990s Ashes, which would go on to be known as the ‘Ball of the Century’. It pitched outside the leg-stump and turned viciously to clip the top of the off-stump.
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Now, 32 years later, Yasir Shah, bowling over the wicket, produced a similar delivery that pitched outside leg-stump, turned enough to square up Mendis and rattle the off-stump. It is to be noted that Warne was a huge admirer of Shah and often expressed his admiration for the legend.
Here is the video of the delivery by Yasir Shah:
Beauty from Yasir Shah like Shane Warne's Ball to Gatting … pic.twitter.com/EKNgpZqZl6
— Taimoor Zaman (@taimoorze) July 18, 2022
Shah’s wicket, however, did little to stop Sri Lanka from piling the runs in the second innings as the hosts managed to take a hefty lead of more than 300 runs. The leg-spinner managed to take three wickets while pacer Mohammad Nawaz claimed five but half-centuries from Oshada Fernando, Dinesh Chandimal, and Mendis took them past 300.
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At stumps on Day 3, Sri Lanka were cruising at 329/9 with a lead of 333 runs. Earlier in the match on Day 1, Shah became the fifth-highest wicket-taker for Pakistan in Tests, as he surpassed the tally of Abdul Qadir when he dismissed Angelo Mathews for a duck. Previously, Sri Lanka managed to take a slender first innings lead of four runs thanks to Chandimal’s 76.
Shaheen Afridi picked up 4/58 but a strong show with the ball by the hosts, apart from that, Prabath Jayasuriya took a five-wicket-haul bowl Pakistan out for 218. The total could have been a lot lower had it not been for Babar Azam’s fighting century. The Pakistan captain scored 119 in Pakistan’s total of 218.
