Sri Lanka have reached the Asia Cup final for the 11th time in their history! Asalanka you absolute champion. Slower length ball on the pads, Asalanka gets across and nervelessly clips it towards the deep square leg fence and punches the air in delight before hugging Pathirana. Bedlam in the crowd. The Sri Lanka players are out in the middle and crowd Asalanka. What scenes.
Excellent game of cricket, which ends in Sri Lanka qualifying for yet another Asia Cup final. They will meet India in the final on the 17th. But before that there is another game left, with India meeting Bangladesh at the same venue tomorrow. We will be back for that as always. Till then, this is Ashish Pant, signing off on behalf of Thilak, Ranjith and Madushka. Ciao!
Kusal Mendis is the Player of the Match: Very happy to come to the final. Overall everyone played really well. Couple of wickets went down, but I was hoping that Charith would finish the game as he has done it before. And he did it. The batter unit have done very well, so have the bowler. Wanindu, Chameera and Kumara are the main bowler, but in the WC they are coming back. Dunith has been bowling well. We have a young unit. Everyone has done well.
Sri Lanka captain, Dasun Shanaka: We had the game under the control but we could have stayed till the end. We gave them a chance to come back but Charith held his nerves. We had the discussion going before the batting. Coaching staff and myself spoke that the mistake was done in the India game. Wickets were given in the first 10 overs, today we did not want to do that mistake. Kusal and Sadeera are the best players of spin at the moment. Charith was great. Character of a great player. Special feeling to play back to back finals. Thanks to the crowd
Presentation time
Only the second time the chasing team won on the last ball in men's ODI Asia Cup. India did it against Bangladesh in the 2018 final.
1.07am: It is seven minutes past one, but the Colombo crowd is buzzing. A stunning run chase and Charith Asalanka held his nerves at the end. Shaheen Afridi tried his best to make a match out of this picking two wickets in the penultimate over, but the target was always in sight. The chase was set up by Kusal Mendis and Pathum Nissanla who added 57 off 60 balls for the second wicket. Mendis and Sadeera Samarawickrama then got together adding 100 off 98 balls. There was a brief collapse but Asalanka kept his cool to take Sri Lanka into another Asia Cup final. And for everyone asking about the 252 target. It was adjusted due to DLS method.
Here's the man of the moment, Asalanka: I just thought how can I get two to hit a gap and run hard because it is a big field and just told Pathirana to run hard. I thought either he will bowl a bouncer or a yorker and then he bowled a slower ball, so it was in my side. I am very excited. Mendis and Sadeera batted really well. I wanted to finish. That is my role. I can rank this innings second place in my book,
Here's the Pakistan captain, Babar Azam: We just decided to bowl our best overs and asked Shaheen to bowl the second last over and believed in Zaman. Sri Lanka played very well, better cricket than us. We have not been up to the mark in the bowling and fielding. That is why we lost the match. In the middle overs, we did not bowl well. That partnership cost us. We started well, ended well, but middle overs were not great. We have lacked that.
Right then. Will it be IND vs PAK, will it be IND vs SL? Super over anyone? Deep third is up. Babar has a long chat with Zaman. So does Shaheen. He is in his debut game. Who will hold their nerve?
Gets an edge, gets a four! Oh, what a game we are witnessing. Length ball outside off. Asalanka looks to hoick it away across the line, gets a thick edge past the keeper, and to the right of short third. Zaman is on his haunches.
Pathirana
Another play and a miss! There is a run out. Oh, dear me, chaos, chaos everywhere! On-pace full length ball outside off. Madushan swings at it and misses. But why isn't he running. Asalanka is haring down. Rizwan throws it back to Zaman, who nails a direct hit at the non-striker's end
Gets a thick inside-edge back onto his boot, but Madushan is on strike now. Slower off-cutter outside off. He went for a slog, gets an inside-edge towards point
Tahir: "Pakistan fighting back like No. 1 team and Sri Lanka playing like defending champion."
Play and a miss! Length ball outside off, he has a swing at it and misses
Oh, dear me, that's a very high full toss. Not a no-ball. That hits Madushan on the thigh pad wayyy down leg stump. But Pakistan have taken the review. Impact is outside leg.
Sri Lanka need 8 to win the game. Seven for a super-over. Zaman Khan, on debut, will bowl the last over.
On a length on off, he bunts it to long on and they have taken the single. Asalanka won't be on strike.
Shaheen is on a hat-trick. Madushan is on. Watch out for the in-dipping yorker.
SHAHEEN YOU BEAUTY! He's been off colour today isn't he? But that's what champions do. Stand up tall when the team needs them. That was a length ball tailing just a touch away from Wellalage. He goes for an almighty hoick only to get a thick edge through to Rizwan.
Wellalage time. Can he finish things off?
Knee-high full toss has been spanked straight down long-on's throat. Dhananjaya! The umpires are checking for the height, but that is fine. It was right there to be hit anywhere. DDS does not get the full swing of the bat going his way. Waseem keeps his composure and hangs on reverse-cupped.
Goes fuller on the stumps, DDS can only dig it back to the bowler
Suhel: "Brilliant batting displayed by Lankans, keeping wickets and maintaining run rate are just marvelous.."
Perfect yorker on off, he digs it to point and sets off
Fine leg back, mid-off comes up
Will hey look for two. They do and make it comfortably. Oh, lovely placement. Fuller-length ball outside off, he drives to the right of long off and they were always going to come back
Shaheen to bowl the penultimate over.
Fuller, on pace ball now on the pads that he clips to deep backward square leg
In the airrrr, over mid-off, Asalanka you beauty! Zaman went slower off cutter on the stumps. He backs away, and just lofts it over mid-off. Didn't care about the timing, just needed to get enough bat on it which he managed with aplomb
Fine leg in, deep midwicket back
Dragged straight to midwicket. Low full toss on off, he miscues to midwicket. No run there. Two dots on the trot
Superb yorker tailing away from Asalanka outside off. He can't jam it out.
Banged in short, he cloths it to the right of deep midwicket for a couple of runs. The throw was quite weak from the deep and the batters made it easy
Pinpoint yorker bang on off stump, DDs somehow digs it out for a run
No Iftikhar, here comes Zaman Khan, who is on debut. Can he be Pakistan's hero?
Shiva: "This is how Semi-finals should be !!! keeping everyone on toes "
Inside-edge and they get eight runs off the over. Full ball again well outside off. He was looking to drive on the up, gets a thick edge close to the stumps. Rizwan gets across to collect it
Around the wicket
Ad again, a searing yorker just outside off, he somehow digs it to deep point for a run
Karthik: "The worms are looking like they will collide in the last over:)"
3W | ||||
1W | 1W | |||
1W |
R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo | |
Toss | Pakistan, elected to bat first |
Series | |
Season | 2023 |
Player Of The Match | |
Match number | ODI no. 4644 |
Hours of play (local time) | 15.00 start, First Session 15.00-18.30, Interval 18.30-19.10, Second Session 19.10-22.40 |
Match days | 14 September 2023 - daynight (50-over match) |
ODI debut | |
Umpires | |
TV Umpire | |
Reserve Umpire | |
Match Referee | |
Points | Sri Lanka 2, Pakistan 0 |