Kusal Mendis scores century in debut as Sri Lanka Test captain
The Sri Lankan batter became the first player from his country to score a hundred in his first match as Test captain.
Sri Lankan batter Kusal Mendis scored a century in his first match as the country's full-time Test captain against Pakistan on Wednesday, according to the Times of India. Mendis, who took over the role from Dhananjaya de Silva last month, reached the milestone with a boundary off Razaullah in the 92nd over.
The 31-year-old helped Sri Lanka recover from a position of 155/4 in 42 overs by sharing a 249-run partnership for the fifth wicket. With this performance, Mendis is the 37th cricketer to score a century in his debut Test match as captain.
Mendis joins an elite group of players including Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, and Joe Root who have achieved this feat. He is also the second player to score a century on his Test captaincy debut against Pakistan, following former England skipper Andrew Strauss.
The century also marked a personal milestone for Mendis, who surpassed 13,000 runs in international cricket. He is the eighth Sri Lankan batter to reach this total across all formats.
He follows in the footsteps of Sri Lankan legends such as Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, and Sanath Jayasuriya in international run-scoring achievements.