Jadeja achieved a significant milestone during the Super Four stage match against Sri Lanka at the R. Premadasa Stadium on Tuesday. In that game, he secured two wickets while conceding 33 runs. This performance elevated the Indian left-arm spinner to a total of 24 wickets in 18 innings, surpassing Irfan Pathan’s record of 22 wickets in 12 innings.
Kuldeep Yadav is also in contention with 19 wickets in nine innings. In total, Jadeja ranks as the fifth-highest wicket-taker in the Asia Cup. At the top of the list is Muthiah Muralidaran with 30 wickets in 24 innings.
India’s bowling unit combined their efforts to halt Sri Lanka’s unbeaten streak of 13 ODI matches, securing their place in the final of the 2023 Asia Cup with a game to spare. They achieved this by restricting the hosts to a modest 172 runs while defending their target at the R. Premadasa Stadium on Tuesday.
While the spinners from both teams dominated the match, the fast bowlers also played a crucial role in India’s 41-run triumph over the co-hosts.
In the earlier stages of the game, the aggressive duo of Dunith Wellalage and Charith Asalanka dismantled India’s top-order batting lineup, enabling Sri Lanka to dismiss the Men in Blue for a total of 213 runs.
Youngster Wellalage achieved a remarkable milestone as he secured his first-ever 5-wicket haul, single-handedly dismantling the formidable Indian batting lineup and claiming the wickets of top-order batsmen such as Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, and Hardik Pandya.