World champions India will face arch-rivals Pakistan for Asian Games men’s cricket gold after both won their semifinals with ease on Thursday in Japan.
India hammered Sri Lanka by 124 runs after Pakistan beat Bangladesh by six wickets to set up a mouth-watering final on Saturday at the Korogi Athletic Park Stadium in Nagoya.
India posted a testing 169-7 on a sharply turning pitch after being asked to bat.
Sri Lanka lost two wickets without a run on the board and crumbled to 45 all out in less than 10 overs of chaos that included three run-outs.
It was Sri Lanka’s lowest total in a men’s T20 international, worse than the 77 they scored against South Africa in New York in 2024.
Sri Lanka opted to field and were given a taste of the power of 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi on his Asian Games debut.
The fearless teenager, who topped the IPL batting charts this year, smoked a whirlwind 38 off 21 balls with six fours and two enormous sixes before falling to a thick edge caught at backward point.
“He is an amazing talent,” said Sri Lankan coach Ashan Priyanjan.
Ishan Kishan was India’s mainstay with a crafted 80 not out, including five sixes.
When Sri Lanka batted, pace bowling great Jasprit Bumrah ripped out two wickets in his first over.
They were 18-5 by the end of the fourth over, with spinner Axar Patel taking two of the wickets.
Nuwanidu Fernando decided he would not wait around for a slow death and smacked two sixes off Washington Sundar only to run himself out for 15 two balls later.
The end came rapidly with the last three wickets falling in three balls.
“We don’t know anything about the final match yet,” said Patel when asked about facing Pakistan.
“Especially about which wicket we will be playing on.
“But all the three pitches in that square look very similar as they all have a lot of cracks.”
Smashing Samad
Earlier, Abdul Samad smashed an unbeaten 30 off 15 balls as Pakistan thumped Bangladesh by six wickets with nine balls to spare in a semifinal reduced to 13 overs by a wet outfield.
“To be honest, we don’t really care about who will win and who will reach the final,” said Pakistan batsman Saim Ayub, who scored 21 of his side’s 112-4 after Bangladesh posted 111-7.
“All we care about is winning the final, no matter who we are playing against,” he said of the prospect of facing India.
Under clear blue skies, Pakistan soon had Bangladesh reeling at 21-3 and then 45-4 in the sixth over.
Towhid Hridoy led a recovery with 42 off 25 balls with two fours and four sixes as Bangladesh reached 111-7.
Pakistan lost some early wickets but once Samad and Hasan Nawaz (27 not out) came together at 53-4 in the seventh over the result never looked in doubt.
The pair posted an unbroken stand of 59 in 32 balls as they raced to their target.
Samad put Pakistan in complete control in the 10th over, bowled by Bangladesh’s Mustafizur Rahman, taking 22 off five balls with a six and four consecutive fours.
It left Pakistan needing only 13 from 18 balls and they cantered home.
Bangladesh will play Sri Lanka for the bronze medal, also on Saturday.
Source: Khaleej Times