Asia Cup 2023: Clinical Sri Lanka Beat Bangladesh By 5 Wickets

#AsiaCup2023                 ~HT.98~

Transcript

00:00 It was a day of resolute 50s and hostile bowling as Sri Lanka slayed Bangladesh by five wickets

00:13 in their Asia Cup opener on Thursday.

00:16 Pacer Mathisha Pathirana's 4-for-32 restricted Bangladesh to 164.

00:22 The home side then took control, riding on Sadeera Samara Vikrama's 54-of-77 balls and

00:29 Charith Asalanka's unbeaten 62-of-92 deliveries to overhaul the target in just under 40 overs.

00:36 Samara Vikrama is going through a career rejuvenation this year after fading from the scene.

00:42 Known as a stylish batsman, he produced some sparkling shots using a wafer-thin bat and

00:49 supple wrists.

00:50 However, his innings came to an end when left-arm spinner and Bangladesh captain Shakebal Hassan

00:56 had him stumped by Mushfiqur Rahim.

00:58 On the other hand, Bangladesh struggled despite a resilient 50 by Najmul Hussain Shanto who

01:05 made 89-of-122 balls.

01:09 Other batsmen failed to pick up any hint from Shanto as Mathisha Pathirana and spinner Mahesh

01:15 Theekshana combined to strike at regular intervals after Bangladesh opted to bat first.

01:21 The pitch offered carry and bounce, which Lankan skipper Dasun Shanaka exploited well.

01:26 He brought Theekshana into the attack in the second over itself while Pathirana soon jettisoned

01:32 skipper Shakebal Hassan.

01:35 Bangladesh was struggling at this stage but showed signs of recovery with fourth-wicket

01:40 alliance between Shanto and Tauhid Bridoy.

01:44 The duo added crucial runs but their partnership was broken apart.

01:49 Despite valiant efforts from Shanto, it wasn't enough against determined Lankan team and

01:54 Bangladesh will have a lot of fine-tuning to do in the coming games.

01:58 The two teams will now travel Pakistan to face Afghanistan respectively in the group

02:04 matches.

02:10 [BLANK_AUDIO]