Dasun Shanaka and Charitha Asalanaka. (Photo Source: Pankaj Nangia/Getty Images)
A brilliant bowling display from the duo of Maheesh Theekshana and Matheesha Pathirana, followed by gritty fifties from Sadeera Samarawickrama and Charith Asalanka, helped Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh by five wickets in the second match of Asia Cup 2023.
Speaking about the game, the visitors won the all-important toss and opted to bat first on a decent batting surface. Maheesh Theekshana, the lead spinner, provided the early breakthrough for the Lankans as Tanzid Hasan departed for a duck on his ODI debut. Dhananjaya de Silva got rid of Mohammad Naim in the eighth over, while skipper Shakib was dismissed for five runs by nicking one past the keeper off Matheesha Pathirana.
Towrid Hridoy and Najmul Hossain Shanto led the rescue with a 59-run stand for the fourth wicket. Dasun Shanaka broke the good-going partnership by picking up Hridoy for 20 with a brilliant review. Wickets kept falling at regular intervals on one end while Shanto was scoring runs at other end with unrestricted flow. Najmul Shanto amassed 89 runs before being the victim of Maheesh Theekshana. Bangladesh was eventually bowled out for 164 runs. For Sri Lanka, Matheesha Pathirana was the pick of bowlers for his spell of 4/32.
Chasing 165 in tricky conditions, The Lankan Lions had an awful start as they lost the top three batters inside 50 runs. Taskin Ahmed cleaned up Dimuth Karunaratne for one, while Pathum Nissanka nicked one to the keeper for 14, and Shakib cleaned up Kusal Mendis with a peach.
Sadeera Samarawickrama and Charith Asalanka kept the chase going with a 78-run stand. Samarawickrama amassed 54 runs before getting dismissed by Mahedi Hasan, while Charith Asalanka remained unbeaten on 62. Asalanka and the skipper added 39 runs to help the defending champions beat the Bangla Tigers by five wickets. Sri Lanka have now won 11 consecutive ODIs.
Meanwhile, let us look at the stats and numbers from match 2 of Asia Cup 2023
27 – Shakib Al Hasan has now taken 27 wickets in the Asia Cup, the third most wickets by any bowler in the Asia Cup. Lasith Malinga leads the list with 33 wickets, followed by Muralitharan at second spot with 30 wickets.
11 – Sri Lanka have bowled out the opponents for the 11th consecutive time in ODIs; this is the most by any team in ODIs. Australia and South Africa have done the same for ten times.
11 – Sri Lanka have now won 11 ODIs on a trot, the most consecutive wins for them in ODIs, bettering their previous best of ten in Feb 2004 and Dec 2013.
89 – Najmul Hossain Shanto scored 89 in this game, the second-highest score for a Bangladesh batter against Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup. Mushfiqur Rahim tops the list with 144 in Dubai in 2018.
307 – Shakib Al Hasan has picked up 307 wickets in ODIs. This is the second most wickets by a left-arm spinner in ODI, bettering Vettori’s tally of 305. Sanath Jayasuriya leads the list with 323 wickets.
4/32 – Matheesha Pathirana recorded his best bowling of 4/32 in this game. His previous best bowling was 2/18 vs Zimbabwe in Bulawayo in 2023.
4 – Tanzid Hasan became the fourth Bangladesh opener to score a duck in ODI debut.
5 – Najmul Hossain Shanto scored five fifty-plus scores in ODIs in 2023, the most by a batter in 2023.
6.5 – Mohammad Naim averages 6.5 in four ODI innings.
Mohammad Naim in ODIs:
5 – Matches
4 – Inns
26 – Runs
6.50 – Average
48.14 – Strike-rate
16 – HS