India leave SL marooned
dubai: Pint-sized Sri Lanka opener Pathum Nissanka smashed a belligerent century as Indian bowlers endured their worst day in the Asia Cup before Arshdeep Singh produced a brilliant ‘Super Over’ to win the game for his side here on Friday.
India will thus play the final of the tournament having won six matches in a row.
Riding on Abhishek Sharma’s third half-century of the event, India scored 202 for 5 in 20 overs but Nissanka packed so much punch in his strokes that left the defending champions on the brink of defeat, before Sri Lanka were stopped at the same score.
Needing 12 off the last over from Harshit Rana and three off the final ball, Dasun Shanaka (22 not out off 11 balls) could manage only two as the match went into Super Over.
The Super Over belonged to Arshdeep, who gave only two runs and got two wickets in five balls. The target of three runs was achieved in a single delivery by skipper Suryakumar Yadav.
During the chase, after Hardik Pandya removed Kusal Mendis in the opening over, Nissanka (107 off 58 balls) and Perera (58 off 32 balls) started a counter attack with such gusto that left the Indian bowlers worried for the first time in the tournament.
Kuldeep Yadav (1/31 in 4 overs) had a decent day by his standards while Varun Chakravarthy (1/31 in 4 overs) wasn’t bad either.
But Harshit Rana (1/54 in 5 overs), Arshdeep Singh (1/46 in 4 overs) and left-arm spinner Axar Patel (0/32 in 3 overs) collectively got smashed for 132 runs in their 11 overs.
However, credit must go to Harshit and Arshdeep for bowling the required dot balls when it mattered the most.
Perera, whose short-arm pulls and lofted drives in the arc between cover and extra cover were a treat to watch, took on Arshdeep and the spinners along with Nissanka, who is gradually proving to be India’s nemesis. They were also very severe on Rana. Pacers Arshdeep and Harshit have been well below par in the two matches.
Brief scores: India: 202/5 in 20 overs (Abhishek 61, Varma 49 not out, Samson 39; Asalanka 1/18); Sri Lanka: 202/ 5 in 20 overs (Nissanka 107, Perera 58; Kuldeep 1/31).
