Sri Lanka on verge of elimination, as India make final

India’s Virat Kohli (R) celebrates with India’s Yuvraj Singh (L) after hitting a boundary during the Asia Cup T20 cricket tournament match between India and Sri Lanka at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka on 1 March - AFP

Madushka Balasuriya reporting 

from Dhaka, Bangladesh

Sri Lanka were all but mathematically eliminated from the Asia Cup last night after suffering a 5 wicket defeat to India at the Sher-E-Bangla Stadium in Mirpur. India meanwhile secured qualification for the final with an unbeaten 56 from Virat Kohli seeing his side home after a disciplined bowling performance had seen Sri Lanka post 138/9 in their 20 overs. 

Having made a faltering start and lost wickets at regular intervals, it was only through some late hitting from Thisara Perera and Nuwan Kulasekera that Sri Lanka even managed to post that much. 47 runs came in the first 10 overs of their innings; that was as much as they managed in their last 5, and two more than what was scored between the 11th and 15th over.

That it was Sri Lanka’s top and middle order which failed to kick-on was brought into sharper focus by the Indian chase. Tillekeratne Dilshan (18), Chamara Kapugedera (30), Angelo Mathews (18) and Milinda Siriwardana (22) all made starts but couldn’t capitalise. In contrast India saw Virat Kohli bat all the way through, having come in in the third over after Shikhar Dhawan had nicked one through to the keeper off the impressive Kulasekera. 

Rohit Sharma was Kulasekera’s next victim, edging one, this time to Kapugedera at slip. Kulasekera finished with figures of 2/21 from 3 overs, however Kohli put on successive fifty run partnerships with Suresh Raina and Yuvraj Singh to ensure that even a late couple of wickets was not enough to derail India’s chase.

The result leaves Sri Lanka with just the one win after three matches, although they retain slim hopes of qualifying for the final on net run rate if Pakistan beat Bangladesh later today, and they in turn beat Pakistan comfortably in their final round robin match.

Earlier, the Sri Lankan top order’s nerves were on full display after being put into bat on a green tinged wicket. Dinesh Chandimal and Tillekeratne Dilshan managed only five runs off the first two overs, despite Chandimal driving the second ball of the innings uppishly through cover for four. That was to be his only contribution with the bat, as the pressure of six consecutive dot balls had the desired effect; Chandimal nicking a thin edge through to the keeper while attempting a slog off Ashish Nehra through midwicket.

Shehan Jayasuriya soon followed, offering another faint nick through to MS Dhoni, this time off the bowling of Jasprit Bumrah. Dilshan and the promoted Chamara Kapugedera attempted to consolidate the innings, but it didn’t last long as Dilshan fell for the oldest trick in the book, top-edging a short one from Hardik Pandya straight to Ravichandran Ashwin at fine leg. With the field having just been spread at the end of the power play and the experienced Dilshan ought to have known better.

Tillakaratne Dilshan struck a 16-ball 18, India v Sri Lanka, Asia Cup 2016, Mirpur, 1 March -AFP

Captain Angelo Mathews along with Kapugedera then waded through a few quiet overs before Mathews finally let loose, lofting Yuvraj Singh straight down the ground. He then whipped Pandya for two more boundaries through midwicket. Pandya had immediate revenge though, as he soon had the ball caroming onto the stumps off the inside edge of Mathews’s bat. 

At 57/4 even getting to triple figures was looking unlikely for the Lankans but some smart batting from Kapugedera and Milinda Siriwardana kept them in the hunt. Siriwardana took the attack to Ravindran Jadeja smashing him for the first six of the innings straight down the ground, before delicately guiding a flatter one to the third man boundary. Kapugedera lifted a straight one from Suresh Raina to the fine leg fence for four, while leaving his best effort for Ashwin; coming down the wicket, he creamed a forearm smash through cover for another boundary. In between the duo managed to milk 9 runs off an over from the impressive Pandya with just ones and twos, something the rest of the batsman might have been wise to have done more often. But just as they were looking set for a late onslaught, their wickets were gifted away; Siriwardana holed out at long-on to the spin of Ashwin for 22, while Kapugedera timed an inside out drive to perfection straight down the throat of sweeper cover.  The Sri Lankan momentum wasn’t lost for long though. Thisara Perera spanked one off Bumrah to the long-off boundary before shifting sides and powering another through midwicket. He then brought out his trademark slog, unleashing a massive six towards cow corner off Ashwin. Still the wily off-spinner was to have the last laugh, bowling one wide on the offside as he eyed Perera coming down the track. Dhoni effected a swift stumping, but replays showed Perera had made his ground. This wasn’t to matter as incredibly the square leg umpire failed to refer the decision to the third umpire. Kulasekera hit two more boundaries off Nehra in the final over to lift Sri Lanka to a competitive 138/9, but it was never going to be enough against a strong Indian batting line-up.