Sri Lanka vs. Pakistan, Super 4, Round 5 of the 2023 Asia Cup, Preview

Sri Lanka vs. Pakistan will face off in Game 5 of the Super Four stage of the ongoing Asia Cup 2023 on Thursday, September 14 at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo. Both teams will be eager to improve after losing to India and will be entering the game on the heels of that defeat.

Notably, the following match will be a virtual semi-final, meaning both Sri Lanka and Pakistan will have everything on the line. The winner of the contest advances to the Asia Cup 2023 championship game. In any case, Sri Lanka will advance to the final due to the net run rate (NRR) if rain plays spoilsport and the game is wiped out.

In their final match, Pakistan faced India and suffered a significant 228-run defeat. When facing Sri Lanka, who have looked threatening throughout the tournament, the Babar Azam-led team will want to put the defeat behind them and play with confidence.

However, after a heroic attempt against India, Sri Lanka was unable to complete the task. The team will be motivated to improve and defeat Pakistan after losing by 41 runs.

Pitch and circumstances:

The hitters have a favoured playing surface at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium. On such a pitch, however, patience is essential since the batters would try to position themselves in the centre before playing strokes according to merit. A large sum might be feasible. Therefore, choosing to bat first can turn out to be the best course of action.

Potential Starting XI for Sri Lanka vs. Pakistan:

South Asia
Sri Lanka will attempt to make as few lineup adjustments as possible before the encounter. They’ll play Pakistan with a team that has been successful for them. The Lankan Lions shouldn’t have to alter their lineup as a result of a late loss to India in their final Super Four match of the 2023 Asia Cup.

Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kusal Mendis (wk), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dasun Shanaka (c), Dunith Wellalage, Mahesh Theekshana, Kasun Rajitha, and Matheesha Pathirana make up the probable starting XI.

Pakistan

Pakistan will aim to make little to no changes before the match. The team would be hoping that the top order performs well and does not replicate their performance against India.

Faheem Ashraf, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Agha Salman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Wasim Jr., and Zaman Khan make up the probable starting XI.

Head-to-head between SL and PAK:

Played: 155, Pakistan: 92, Sri Lanka: 58, Tied: 1, No Result: 4

PAK vs. SL Information on live streaming and broadcast:
Match times: IST 3:00

Streaming live: Star Sports Network

Disney+ Hotstar App and Website: Live Streaming

The outcome will be Pakistan defeating Sri Lanka.