Power-packed Afghans’ mouthwatering chase went in vain as Sri Lanka prevailed in a high-scoring thriller to seal the final Super 4 spot in the Asia Cup at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
Sri Lankan openers Dimuth Karunaratne and Pathum Nissanka got off to a good start on a batting-friendly pitch, accumulating 62 runs in the first 10 overs. However, their fortunes changed when Gulbadin Naib got rid of Karunaratne (32 off 35) after he mistimed a shot due to the ball stopping on him, resulting in a straightforward catch at cover.
Suddenly, Sri Lanka found themselves at 86/3 as Nissanka’s promising start was also ended by Naib. Naib dismissed Saddera Samarawickcrama next to claim his 3rd. Charith Asalanka then partnered with Kusal Mendis, and together, they managed to steady the ship with an outstanding 102-run stand for the 4th wicket.
The star leg-spinner Rashid Khan eventually made the breakthrough, with Asalanka chipping the ball back to the bowler after contributing 36 runs. Mendis, despite a slow start, began to gain momentum, smashing three consecutive boundaries off Rashid in the 27th over.
However, his innings came to an unfortunate end when he was run out at the non-striker’s end, falling just 8 runs short of what would have been his third ODI century. Dhananjaya De Silva and Skipper Dasun Shanaka couldn’t make significant contributions as they were both dismissed by the Afghan mystery spinners Mujeeb and Rashid. At 227/7, Sri Lanka found themselves in a slightly uncomfortable position going into the last phase of the innings.
Nonetheless, youngsters Dunith Wellalage and Maheesh Theekshana put together the finishing touches for Sri Lanka, adding 64 runs for the 8th wicket. This partnership helped Sri Lanka post a total of 291/8 in their 50 overs. Theekshana contributed 28 runs off 24 balls before being dismissed on the last ball of the innings, while Wellalage remained unbeaten with a valuable 33 runs. On the other hand, Gulbadin Naib was the standout bowler, finishing with figures of 4/60, while Rashid Khan managed to scalp two wickets despite being relatively expensive.
Afghanistan needed to hit 292 in 37.1 overs to make their way into the Super 4s on Net Run Rate. However, they lost both of their openers within the first 5 overs, courtesy of Kasun Rajitha. Gulbadin Naib was promoted up the order but was trapped in front of the stumps by Matheesha Pathirana, reducing Afghanistan to 50/3.
Rahmat Shah and captain Hashmatullah Shahidi put up some resistance, adding 71 runs for the 4th wicket in quick time but once again, Rajitha made the breakthrough dismissing Shah for 45.
Mohammad Nabi then joined his captain, and together, they changed the game entirely in favor of Afghanistan. Nabi played aggressively, smashing the fastest-ever half-century in ODIs for the Afghan team. The duo accelerated, amassing 80 runs in just 47 balls, bringing down the equation.
Theekshana managed to get the massive wicket of Nabi, but by then, Nabi had already done enough damage with a blistering 65 off 32 balls, including 6 fours and 5 maximums. Wellalage was brought into the attack in the 32nd over, and he created another twist in the game by removing Karim Janat (22 off 13) and the well-set skipper Shahidi (59 off 66) in that over.
However, Afghanistan still had firepower left in their batting order as Najibullah Zadran and Rashid Khan joined the party. When they needed 27 off 13, the duo scored 11 runs within the first three balls of the 36th over before Rajitha dismissed the left-hander, Najibullah, thanks to a brilliant catch by substitute fielder Dushan Hemantha at backward square-leg.
The young Wellalage was brought into the attack in the 37th over, and he started well with a couple of dot balls to Rashid. The powerful Rashid managed to find three boundaries in the final four balls of the over, bringing Afghanistan within three runs of victory with one ball remaining to reach 292. Sri Lankan skipper Dasun Shanaka then entrusted the last over to Dhananjaya De Silva, who had Mujeeb Ur Rahman caught out at long-on with the first delivery of that over.
However, Afghanistan still had another opportunity to win by hitting a six off the next three deliveries, but it turned out that the Afghans did not know of an equation beyond the 37.1 over mark and Fazalhaq Farooqi blocked three deliveries, perhaps hoping that he could hold on for Rashid Khan to hit the winning runs in the next over as a consolation.
In the end, De Silva trapped him LBW on the fourth ball, securing a breathtaking 2-run victory for Sri Lanka. Rashid Khan, who had denied two singles in the 36th over, could only watch agonisingly from the non-striker’s end. Rajitha ended up with four wickets despite being expensive, and De Silva and Wellalage each contributed with a couple of scalps.
As a result of this victory, Afghanistan was knocked out of the Asia Cup 2023, while Sri Lanka progressed to the Super Fours, maintaining their winning streak with 12 consecutive wins. Sri Lanka also held the world record for bowling out opponents 12 consecutive times.
Result
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pathum Nissanka | c Najibullah Zadran b Gulbadin Naib | 41 | 40 | 6 | 0 | 102.50 |
| Dimuth Karunaratne | c Mohammad Nabi b Gulbadin Naib | 32 | 35 | 6 | 0 | 91.43 |
| Kusal Mendis | run out (Rashid Khan) | 92 | 84 | 6 | 3 | 109.52 |
| Sadeera Samarawickrama | c Rahmanullah Gurbaz b Gulbadin Naib | 3 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 37.50 |
| Charith Asalanka | c & b Rashid Khan | 36 | 43 | 2 | 1 | 83.72 |
| Dhananjaya de Silva | b Mujeeb ur Rahman | 14 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 73.68 |
| Dasun Shanaka | b Rashid Khan | 5 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 62.50 |
| Dunith Wellalage | not out | 33 | 39 | 3 | 1 | 84.62 |
| Mahesh Theekshana | b Gulbadin Naib | 28 | 24 | 2 | 1 | 116.67 |
| Extras | 7 (b 0 , lb 1 , nb 0, w 6, pen 0) |
| Total | 291/8 (50 Overs, RR: 5.82) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fazal Haq Farooqi | 7 | 1 | 52 | 0 | 7.43 | |
| Mujeeb ur Rahman | 10 | 1 | 60 | 1 | 6.00 | |
| Gulbadin Naib | 10 | 0 | 60 | 4 | 6.00 | |
| Mohammad Nabi | 10 | 0 | 35 | 0 | 3.50 | |
| Rashid Khan | 10 | 0 | 63 | 2 | 6.30 | |
| Karim Janat | 3 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 6.67 | |
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rahmanullah Gurbaz | c Kusal Mendis b Kasun Rajitha | 4 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 50.00 |
| Ibrahim Zadran | b Kasun Rajitha | 7 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 50.00 |
| Gulbadin Naib | lbw b Matheesha Pathirana | 22 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 137.50 |
| Rahmat Shah | c Matheesha Pathirana b Kasun Rajitha | 45 | 40 | 5 | 1 | 112.50 |
| Hashmatullah Shahidi | c Kasun Rajitha b Dunith Wellalage | 59 | 66 | 3 | 1 | 89.39 |
| Mohammad Nabi | c Dhananjaya de Silva b Mahesh Theekshana | 65 | 32 | 6 | 5 | 203.12 |
| Karim Janat | c Dimuth Karunaratne b Dunith Wellalage | 22 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 169.23 |
| Najibullah Zadran | c Dushan Hemantha b Kasun Rajitha | 23 | 15 | 1 | 2 | 153.33 |
| Rashid Khan | not out | 27 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 168.75 |
| Mujeeb ur Rahman | c Sadeera Samarawickrama b Dhananjaya de Silva | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Fazal Haq Farooqi | lbw b Dhananjaya de Silva | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Extras | 15 (b 0 , lb 5 , nb 0, w 10, pen 0) |
| Total | 289/10 (37.4 Overs, RR: 7.67) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kasun Rajitha | 10 | 0 | 79 | 3 | 7.90 | |
| Mahesh Theekshana | 10 | 0 | 62 | 1 | 6.20 | |
| Dunith Wellalage | 4 | 0 | 36 | 2 | 9.00 | |
| Matheesha Pathirana | 10 | 0 | 63 | 1 | 6.30 | |
| Dasun Shanaka | 2 | 0 | 32 | 0 | 16.00 | |
| Dhananjaya de Silva | 1.4 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 8.57 | |
