Asia Cup 2022: The batters steal the show as Sri Lanka start the Super Four stage with a win
Sri Lanka start the Super Four with a win: Match report of the first match of the super four stage of the Asia Cup 2022 where Sri Lanka took on Afghanistan.
Sri Lanka start the Super Four: The first match of the Super Four stage of the Asia Cup 2022 saw Sri Lanka face Afghanistan at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. It was a high-scoring affair and Sri Lanka beat Afghanistan convincingly to grab two points.
Sri Lankan skipper Dasun Shanaka won the toss and opted to bowl first. The decision backfired as the Afghan side got off to a fantastic start, thanks to Rahmanullah Gurbaz. He took on the bowling from the word go as they scored 49 at the end of the powerplay. Gurbaz along with Ibrahim Zadran put up a solid 93-run stand for the second wicket.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz Scored 84 off just 45 balls
Vs Sri Lanka
Gurbaz departed on 84 off 45 balls and Zadran also was dismissed in the 18th over on 40 as it helped the Lankan side to pull back things in the slog overs. The Lankan bowlers picked up six wickets in total and restricted Afghanistan to 175 at the end of their 20 overs.
Chasing 176, Kusal Mendis for Sri Lanka led the charge from the start of the innings as he played some beautiful strokes and helped them score 57 at the end of the powerplay. He played one shot too many as he departed on 36 in the seventh over. Pathum Nissanka looked good at the other end but the Afghan side bounced back in the game with two wickets in quick succession.
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The Afghan bowlers picked up wickets at regular intervals and pulled things back in the middle phase. Bhanuka Rajapaksa along with Danushka Gunathilaka build a solid partnership for the fifth wicket but the latter fell in the 17th over on 33. Rajapaksa (31 off 14 balls) played some lusty blows in the end to help his side chase down the total in the last over to win the game by four wickets.
Sri Lanka start the Super Four stage of the Asia Cup 2022 with a win
Sri Lanka defeated Bangladesh in their last group fixture to seal a berth in the super fours. They were riding with confidence after that tight win and carried forward the winning momentum. They beat Afghanistan in a close-fought contest. The Lankan side has come to the party at the right time in the tournament and will look to keep performing in a similar fashion in their upcoming games.
Afghanistan were unbeaten in the competition. They posted a very good total on the board but their bowlers failed to back up their batters to hand Sri Lanka a win. They haven’t gotten off to a good start to the super four stage of the Asia Cup 2022. The Afghan side will be hoping to bounce back in the competition when they take the field against Pakistan on Wednesday.
Player of the Match
Rahmanullah Gurbaz was named the player of the match for his brilliant knock of 84 off 45 balls.
Of course disappointed with the result. But it happens. We were short 25 runs. Just tried to play my natural game and be positive. He (Trott) works so hard with us. So happy with him. We will take it from here to the World Cup as well.
– Rahmanullah Gurbaz
It’s the belief of the dressing room. As a team we believe we can chase anything on these kind of wickets. When chasing, we have a clear idea of how the wicket behaves. Boys executed the plan very well.
– Dasun Shanaka, Sri Lanka Skipper
Score Summary
Afghanistan: 175/6 (20)
(Rahmanullah Gurbaz 84, Ibrahim Zadran 40, Dilshan Madushanka 2/37)
Sri Lanka: 179/6 (19.1)
(Kusal Mendis 36, Pathum Nissanka 35, Mujeeb Ur Rahman 2/30)
Sri Lanka beat Afghanistan by four wickets.
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