Dubai 10th September : Sri Lanka and Pakistan which started their tournament with defeats, but then had remarkable comebacks they will face off for the final time in the tournament with the goal of winning the highly-contested Asia Cup 2022 title at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, here on Sunday.Sri Lanka, who came to the tournament following the country’s socio-economic crisis and chaos in their country and suffered a loss of eight wickets against Afghanistan in their first match.
Since the time the Dasun Shanaka-led team hasn’t lost a single game and are winning four times in a row.
On the other side, Pakistan had lost a close match against the archrivals in their opening game of the campaign.However they also won the crucial games and made it to the finals.
Sri Lanka, in their 11th final in this tournament, are hoping to increase their Asia Cup title tally to six while Pakistan are hoping to add their third trophy to the trophy collection.
Prior to the crucial final, the two teams met in the Super Four game on Friday in which Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by five wickets.It was a sort of rehearsal for the final game and they could have gotten an insight into their strengths and weaknesses.
In the final match, Pakistan will try to enhance their batting against Sri Lanka’s spin potential.The top six of Babar Azam’s team slipped with less than 120 spinners in T20Is from 2021 onwards, so the spin department helmed by Wanindu Hasaranga could define Sri Lanka’s fate in this match.
Pakistan batters were clearly struggling against Sri Lanka spinners on Friday.Even the part-time spinner Dhananjaya de Silva was on his backs, and finished with an innings of 1-18 in which he did not let down any four wickets.
Pakistan have also lost momentum in the post-PowerPlay phase of 7 to 10 overs, a time which Sri Lanka spinners could look to maximize.Also, they’ve tried a variety of combinations in bats in the middle overs, but haven’t let anyone grasp the specific task.
Also, Shadab Khan, who was clean with the bat in No.5 in the thrilling match against Afghanistan is able to be able to stop the Sri Lanka spin threat.
The bowling line-up has been the strength of Pakistan in this tournament, even with the absence of a handful of important fast bowlers.Naseem Shah and Shadab Khan who were both rested on Friday, will be able to be back in the Pakistan eleven in time for the last.
On the other on the other hand, the toss can be a crucial element in the case of Sri Lanka.They have had the benefit of bowling first in each of their four wins and the reverse of luck at the toss may come as a tough test.
In addition to spin bowling abilities, Sri Lanka also has been able to draw contributions from their top five batters.The openers Kusal Mendis and Pathum Nissanka have had a positive start at the top of the order, while players like of Danushka Gunathilaka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Shanaka himself and Chamikaatne Karunaratne have all scored runs when it mattered most.
Sri Lanka and Pakistan have played in three Asia Cup finals — the former triumphed in 1986 and in 2014,, while the latter won in 2000.This is Sri Lanka’s 11th Asia Cup final — the most for an individual team.
Overall an exciting and thrilling match is expected on Sunday.
Teams:
Sri Lanka: Dasun Shanaka (c), Danushka Gunathilaka, Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Ashen Bandara, Dhananjaya de Silva, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Jeffrey Vandersay, Praveen Jayawickrama, Chamika Karunaratne, Dilshan Madushanka, Matheesha Pathirana, Nuwanidu Fernando and Dinesh Chandimal
Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Qadir, Mohammed Hasnain, Hasan Ali
avn/bsk
