After defeating Bangladesh by six wickets in the tournament’s fifth match on Saturday, Sri Lanka recorded its first Asia Cup 2025 victory.
After winning the toss, captain Charith Asalanka decided to bowl first, a move that instantly paid dividends.
Nuwan Thushara and Dushmantha Chameera made breakthroughs in their opening overs, launching Sri Lanka’s pace attack. After Chameera removed Parvez Hossain Emon and Thushara rocked Tanzid Hasan’s stumps, Bangladesh was left reeling and both openers were returned to the pavilion without scoring.
Before losing to Wanindu Hasaranga, Litton Das scored 28 in an effort to steady the innings. Mahedi Hasan left cheaply shortly after Kamil Mishara’s quick throw ran out Towhid Hridoy. Before Jaker Ali and Shamim Hossain pulled off a stunning comeback, Bangladesh appeared to be in serious trouble.
The two led Bangladesh to 139/5 in their allocated 20 overs with an undefeated 86-run partnership for the sixth wicket off just 61 balls. Shamim added 42 not-out, and Ali was still undefeated at 41. Although Chameera bowled a tight four-over spell, stopping the run flow from one end, Hasaranga was the best bowler with two wickets.
The Lankan Lions started well, chasing a modest score of 140. The victory was now almost a formality, and Pathum Nissanka and Kamil Mishara put together a fluid 95-run partnership for the second wicket in just 52 deliveries. Mishara led the chase with an undefeated 46, while Nissanka scored a solid 50 off 34 balls. The Lankans easily reached the mark with plenty of time left, even though they lost a few wickets in the middle.
Mahedi Hasan, who finished with stats of 2/29 in his four overs, was the best bowler for the Litton Das-led team. Following their first loss of the tournament, the Bangla Tigers dropped to third place on the points table, while the Asalanka-led Lankans surged to second place with this victory.
Who Made What Remark?
Kamil Mishara, the match’s MVP
Pathum advised playing the game normally, taking your time, and taking care of your own needs. I’m thrilled to have won a game for the nation once more. I put a lot of effort into believing in my strengths.
Bangladeshi Litton Das (Losing Captain)
We lost the game on powerplay, I thought. It was quite easy to bat on the wicket. A different game would have been played between 170-180. You must bowl and field well if you want to reach 140 on a decent wicket. That’s not what we did. Act (against Afghanistan) or perish. We appreciate all of our supporters. I hope they return to see our game.
Sri Lanka’s Charith Asalanka (winning captain)
With two overs, two maidens, and two wickets, it was an ideal beginning. The googly (Hasaranga) is his primary weapon. Not even we can choose him correctly. He is a superstar. We recognised that we needed to finish it as quickly as possible after we reached 120 runs. Fantastic fan support. even supporters of Bangladesh. We would like to thank everyone who helped us.
India
