Sri Lanka captain Mendis wins toss, sends a new-look Pakistan lineup in to bat in 1st cricket test
RAWALPINDI, Pakistan (AP) — Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis won the toss and elected to bowl first Monday in the first cricket test against a new-look Pakistan lineup containing four players on debut.Arafat Minhas, a spinning allrounder and player of the recent triangular ODI series, fast bowler Saqib Khan and top-order batters Tayyab Arif and Mohammad Taha were all on debut for the hosts.
In the first cricket test between Sri Lanka and Pakistan, Sri Lanka's Kusal Mendis won the toss and opted to bowl first. The hosts were fielding a new lineup, with four players making their debut, including spinning allrounder Arafat Minhas, fast bowler Saqib Khan, top-order batters Tayyab Arif and Mohammad Taha. For Pakistan, veteran Mohammad Abbas led the pace attack, alongside Razaullah and Saqib Khan.
Notably, the Pakistani team featured no specialist spinner. The match took place at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, a venue with a recent connection to Sri Lanka, as the team won the ODI tri-series there by a high score of 430 runs against England in the previous month.
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