Bangladesh beat Sri Lanka by four wickets in the T20I Asia Cup Super Fours opener at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai on Saturday evening.
Chasing a competitive 169-run target for victory, Bangladesh crossed the finish line on the penultimate ball of the game with four wickets in hand.
Opener Saif Hassan was the top scorer for the winning side with 61 off 45 balls, laced with two fours and four maximums. Towhid Hridoy contributed a valuable 58 of 37 balls, hitting four fours and two sixes.
Skipper Litton Das made 23 off 16 balls with the help of three boundaries. Shamim Hossain made an unbeaten 14 off 12 balls, hitting two fours.
Dasun Shanaka and Wanindu Hasaranga got two wickets each, and Nuwan Thushara and Dushmantha Chameera one each. Saif Hassan was named player of the match.
Sri Lanka Scorecard:
After being put into bat first by Bangladesh skipper Litton Das, Pathum Nissanka (22 off 15 balls) and Kusal Mendis (34 off 25 balls) provided a solid start with a 44-run opening partnership.
Despite losing wickets in the middle overs, Sri Lanka’s batters managed to keep a healthy run rate. Dasun Shanaka (64 off 37 balls) and skipper Charith Asalanka (21 off 12 balls) ensured a strong finish to take the team score to 168/7 in the allocated 20 overs.
Kusal Perera also contributed a valuable 16 off 16 balls. Mustafizur Rahman bagged three wickets, Mahedi Hasan two and Taskin Ahmed one, while Charith Asalanka was run out.
Giving a reason for bowling first, Litton Das said that the teams won while chasing during the first round.
Charith Asalanka also wanted to do the same after winning the toss. He, however, said that batting first was not an issue as it was a dry, used surface.
Sri Lanka Playing XI: 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Kusal Mendis (wk), 3 Kamil Mishara, 4 Kusal Perera. 5 Charith Asalanka (capt), 6 Kamindu Mendis, 7 Dasun Shanaka. 8 Wanindu Hasaranga, 9 Dunith Wellalage, 10 Dushmantha Chameera, 11 Nuwan Thushara
Bangladesh Playing XI: 1 Tanzid Hasan, 2 Saif Hassan, 3 Litton Das (capt, wk), 4 Towhid Hridoy. 5 Jaker Ali, 6 Shamim Hossain, 7 Nasum Ahmed, 8 Shoriful Islam. 9 Mahedi Hasan, 10 Taskin Ahmed, 11 Mustafizur Rahman
