India in the Asia Cup 2023 final being played on Sunday were crowned as champions following their 10-wicket win over hosts Sri Lanka.
Chasing a small target of 51, Indian openers Ishan Kishan and Shubman Gill wasted no time and completed the run-chase in 6.1 overs securing the eighth Asia Cup title victory for the Men in Blue. Kishan and Gill scored 23 and 27 runs respectively.
The hosts Sri Lanka, opted to bat first after winning the toss earlier in the day with the match starting with a delay of 40 minutes due to rain.
However, Sri Lanka's batting line collapsed in 15.2 overs. The carnage started with Jasprit Bumrah removing Kusal Perera in the first over the game.
However, India's Mohammad Siraj bamboozled the Sri Lankan batters to complete his fifer in his first three overs of the spell.
Siraj ended up with historic figures of six for 21 in seven overs. The right-arm pacer conceded only 21 runs in his remarkable spell.
Only two Sri Lankan batters managed to get into double figures, with Dushan Hemantha scoring an unbeaten 13 and Kusal Mendis adding another 17 runs.
Apart from Siraj's six-wicket haul, Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah bagged three and one wickets each, leaving Sri Lanka bowled out at 50 in 15.2 overs.
In response, Blue Shirts sailed through the 51-run target and completed the chase with 10 wickets in hand.
This is the lowest total in the history of Asia Cup (ODI) history since the record was previously held by Bangladesh, who scored 87 runs against Pakistan back in 2000.
Published in Times of Karachi,
17 Sep, 2023
Written By Zeeshan Ahmed
Zeeshan Ahmed is a Communication graduate from the University of Karachi. He has been associated with electronic, print, and digital media for the past ten years. He has worked on multiple beats but his major expertise lies in sports reporting. He is an accredited sports journalist by PCB and has been active in sports reporting.