In the Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 stage, India faced off against Sri Lanka, where Kuldeep Yadav played a pivotal role, leading India to a convincing 41-run victory in Colombo on Tuesday. Supported by Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja, who both claimed two wickets each, India successfully defended their total of 213 on a pitch favoring spin bowlers.
A mere day after their impressive win against Pakistan, India continued their remarkable form by defeating Sri Lanka at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium on September 12, securing their place in the 2023 Asia Cup final.
Once again, Kuldeep Yadav was the standout performer with the ball, following his five-wicket haul against Pakistan with an impressive 4 for 43 against Sri Lanka. This victory also brought an end to Sri Lanka’s remarkable streak of 13 consecutive wins in one-day internationals.
Unfortunately, Dunith Wellalage’s exceptional all-round performance for Sri Lanka, where he picked up 5 wickets for 40 runs and contributed an unbeaten 42 off 46 balls, went unrewarded as he ran out of batting partners.
India had a challenging schedule but managed to win their second consecutive Super 4 match in the Asia Cup. Their match against Pakistan started on Sunday but was interrupted by rain after 24.1 overs. The teams returned on Monday, the Reserve Day, with Virat Kohli and KL Rahul both scoring centuries to set a target of 356 for 2 in 50 overs. Kuldeep Yadav’s five-wicket haul then led India to a resounding 228-run win.
Despite losing all their wickets to spin bowlers for the first time in one-day internationals, India’s fast bowlers, led by Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, dismantled Sri Lanka’s top order, reducing them to 25 for 3 in the 8th over. Sadeera Samarawickrama and Charith Asalanka tried to stabilize the innings with a 43-run partnership, but Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja took crucial wickets to put India in control. Sri Lanka found themselves struggling at 99 for 6.
However, Dhananjaya de Silva and Dunith Wellalage fought valiantly. De Silva’s solid defensive play and intelligent running between the wickets, combined with Wellalage’s maturity at just 20 years old, kept Sri Lanka’s hopes alive. Wellalage even struck a six off Kuldeep Yadav and displayed excellent composure. Their partnership brought Sri Lanka within 52 runs of the target before Ravindra Jadeja dismissed de Silva.
The match became a thrilling contest as Sri Lanka needed 52 runs from 12 overs with only three wickets in hand. Axar Patel didn’t need to bowl as Maheesh Theekshana, not known for his batting skills, managed just 2 runs off 14 balls and was caught by Suryakumar Yadav off Hardik Pandya’s bowling. The spotlight was now firmly on Dunith Wellalage, who had already earned hero status for his earlier contributions. Kuldeep Yadav returned for his final over and took the crucial wickets of Kasun Rajitha and Matheesha Pathirana to secure victory for India and reach a personal milestone of 150 wickets.
In the toss on Tuesday, India’s captain Rohit Sharma chose to bat on a pitch that favored Sri Lankan spinners. The opening partnership of Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill, which had been successful in the tournament, added 80 runs for the first wicket before Gill fell to Dunith Wellalage, who would later pick up five wickets.
Wellalage continued to trouble India’s batsmen, dismissing Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. India faced a challenging period, slipping to 91 for 3 in the 16th over. Ishan Kishan and KL Rahul then added 63 runs for the fourth wicket, stabilizing India’s innings. However, Wellalage’s unstoppable bowling removed Rahul, breaking the partnership.
Charith Asalanka, with his part-time spin, added to India’s woes by taking four wickets, including the key dismissals of Ishan Kishan and Ravindra Jadeja. Wellalage completed a perfect spell with figures of 5 for 40 by dismissing Hardik Pandya on his final delivery of the tenth over.
Charith Asalanka continued to trouble India’s lower order, finishing with figures of 4 for 18 off 9 overs. Maheesh Theekshana dismissed Axar Patel to bowl India out for 213.
The upcoming Super 4 match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka on September 14 will serve as a virtual semifinal, with the winner advancing to face India in the final. India’s match against Bangladesh holds no significance in terms of the final, which may lead Rohit Sharma and coach Rahul Dravid to experiment with some reserve players to test the bench strength.