Mumbai: India defeated Sri Lanka by 10 wickets to win the Asia Cup for a record-extending eighth time across formats. Sri Lanka were bowled out for 50, the lowest-ever ODI total against India.
Pacer Mohammed Siraj became the first-ever Indian to take four wickets in an over in international cricket. He also became the joint-quickest bowler to take an ODI five-wicket haul.
Despite the ominous weather, Sri Lanka chose to bat first after winning the toss, and the game began 40 minutes after its scheduled 3 PM start time.
The pacer tied Sri Lankan pacer Chaminda Vaas for the fastest five-wicket haul in one-day matches and became just the fourth bowler in ODI history to take four wickets in one over.
The elegance of Siraj’s bowling, though, went beyond simple statistics. After Kusal Perera was ejected by Jasprit Bumrah for a legal caught behind on the third ball of the first over, he took action.
Siraj only needed to pitch the ball in the appropriate spots in conditions that were more akin to London than Colombo.
With 3.1, 3.3, 3.4, and 3.6 balls in the fourth over, Siraj performed his destructive dance. Pathum Nissanka, Sadeera Samaraiwickrama, Charith Asalanka, and Dhananjaya De Silva were among the victims.
Siraj, however, was not finished. To finish their annihilation, he castled Kusal Mendis and Lankan captain Dasun Shanaka with peaches.
The Sri Lankan batting was over after Siraj concluded his spell. With three wickets, Hardik Pandya put the final touches on the victory.
Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan, the openers, easily reached the target of 51 runs as Sri Lanka struggled to defend the lowest total in the Asia Cup’s ODI format.
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