Asalanka held his nerve to give Srilanka a thrilling win in the final ball (Image Credit:- Twitter)
| Pakistan 252/7 (42 Overs) |
| Srilanka 252/8 (42 Overs) |
| Result:- Srilanka won by 2 wickets under DLS method |
Srilanka beat Pakistan by 2 wickets in a thriller and will face India in Asia Cup final on Sunday (September 17th). Due to rain the match reduced to 42 over a side. Charith Asalanka took double in the last ball of the match to help Srilanka reach 252 (DLS method) run target.
Pakistan captain Babar Azam won the toss and elected to bat first. Pramod Madushan gives Srilanka early breakthrough by dismissing Fakhar Zaman (4 runs from 11 balls). Abdullah Shafique (52 runs from 69 balls) and Babar Azam (29 runs 35 balls) put together 64 runs from 70 balls for the second wicket. Dunith Wellalge broke the partnership by dismissing Pakistan captain Babar Azam.
Rizwan top scorer for Pakistan with 86 run from 73 balls (Image Credit:- Twitter)
Srilanka picked quick wickets after Babar Azam’s dismissal and pushed Pakistan to 130/5 in 27.4 overs. Mohammed Rizwan (86 runs from 73 balls) and Iftikhar Ahmed (47 runs from 40 balls) partnership of 108 runs from 78 balls took Pakistan to 252/7 in 42 overs. Mohammed Rizwan was lucky that Srilanka keeper Kusal Mendis missed one stumping opportunity early in his innings of Dhananjaya.
Matheesha Pathirana (3/65 in 8 overs) , Pramod Madhusan (2/58 in 7 overs) , Dunith Wellalge (1/40 in 9 overs) and Maheesh Theekshana (1/42 in 9 overs) are the wicket takers for Srilanka.
Chasing 252 run target under DLS method Srilanka lost their opener Kusal Perera (17 runs from 8 balls) early. Shadab Khan’s direct throw ended Kusal Perera innings in runout. Kusal Mendis (91 runs from 87 balls) and Pathum Nissanka (29 runs from 44 balls) partnership of 57 runs from 60 balls set the platform for the chase. Shadab Khan broke the partnership by dismissing Pathum Nissanka.
Kusal Mendis scored crucial 91 for Srilanka in the chase (Image Credit:- Twitter)
Kusal Mendis along with Sadeera Samarawickrama (48 runs from 51 balls) build another crucial partnership of 100 runs from 98 balls for the third wicket. Mohammed Rizwan stumped Sadeera Samarawickrama when he stepped out to play the ball off Iftikhar Ahmed. Iftikhar Ahmed again dismissed dangerous Kusal Mendis for 91 when Srilanka were 42 run away from 42 balls.
Pakistan made a strong comeback into the game by picking quick wickets after Kusal Mendis dismissal. Charith Asalanka (49* runs from 47 balls) held the nerves till final ball to help Srilanka reach the 11th Asia cup final.
Needed 12 to win from 12 balls Shaheen Shah Afridi bowled a brillant 41st over giving just 4 runs and picked the wickets of Dhananjaya de Silva and Dunith Wellalage. Zaman Khan who made debut for Pakistan bowled a decent final over but Charith Asalanka’s innings in the end help Srilanka to reach the target in final ball.
Iftikhar Ahmed (3/50 in 8 overs) , Shaheen Shah Afridi (2/55 in 9 overs) and Shadab Khan (1/55 in 9 overs) are the wicket takers for Pakistan.
Player of the Match:- Kusal Mendis (91 runs from 87 balls)
Today’s Match (15/09/2023):- India vs Bangladesh in R Premadasa Stadium , Colombo at 03:00 PM(IST).