Pallekele (Sri Lanka), February 12 Pavan Rathnayake and captain Dasun Shanaka found their form with brilliant fifties, while Kusal Mendis anchored the innings with another half-century as Sri Lanka amassed a formidable 225 for 5 against Oman in their Group B T20 World Cup match here on Thursday.
After a disappointing World Cup debut against Ireland, where he was dismissed for a clumsy upper cut for 5, Rathnayake made amends in style, smashing a 60 off 28 balls (8x4, 1x6).
He reached his maiden T20I fifty in just 24 balls, surpassing his previous best of 40 at this venue earlier this month.
The 23-year-old pacer, Jiten Ramanandi, was targeted for the innings' first six in the 12th over, and he then hammered Sufyan Mehmood for three successive fours to reach the milestone.
Rathnayake and the experienced Mendis added 94 runs off just 52 balls, maintaining a run-rate of over nine through the middle overs.
They skillfully rotated the strike, with 40 of Sri Lanka's 96 runs at the halfway mark coming in singles and twos.
Mendis, playing the senior partner's role perfectly, capitalised on the width from the Oman spinners and scored 61 off 45 balls, his second successive fifty and the 19th overall.
He was run out in the penultimate over.
Shanaka, who had endured a lean build-up to the tournament with scores of 1, 4, and 0, exploded at the death with a 50 off 19 balls – the fastest by a Sri Lankan in the T20 World Cup.
He took on Nadeem Khan with a boundary and two consecutive sixes, and then smashed Sufyan Mehmood for two successive sixes to reach the landmark.
Shanaka and Mendis were dismissed in consecutive deliveries in the 19th over, briefly slowing the momentum.
However, Kamindu Mendis ended with a flourish, hitting Shah Faisal for two consecutive sixes, as the co-hosts scored 65 runs in the last four overs to post the highest total of this edition so far.
