After the opening pair of Muneeba Ali and Sidra Ameen walked out to chase the Sri Lankan total, with Ali being the more aggressive of the two, Pakistan’s pursuit got off to a fast start.
Sri Lanka upset Pakistan by a narrow margin in the Asia Cup semi-final to advance to Saturday’s championship match against India. After winning the toss, Sri Lanka decided to bat, scoring a disappointing score of 122 runs. Nashra Sandhu of Pakistan helped her team restrict Sri Lanka to a low total by taking three wickets. After the opening pair of Muneeba Ali and Sidra Ameen walked out to chase the Sri Lankan total, with Ali being the more aggressive of the two, Pakistan’s pursuit got off to a fast start.
The batter looked excellent and appeared poised to score heavily as she hit three boundaries in the opening three overs. Due to Ali’s aggression and the Sri Lankan bowlers’ careless bowling, who gave away a lot of extras, Pakistan was at 31/0 after three overs.
Muneeba Ali, who appeared to be in line for a solid inning and was run out due to brilliant fielding by the Sri Lankans and unfortunate circumstances on the side of the Pakistani, was run out as Sri Lanka desperately sought a wicket. She was let go for 18 (10).
At three, Pakistan’s captain Bismah Maroof stepped up to the plate and immediately made her intentions known by hitting a boundary with her first ball. The first of the fifth over saw her hit another limit.
Pakistan’s powerplay came to a close at 46/1 as the team made it clear that it intended to play aggressively right from the start of the innings.
Hasini Perera ended Sidra Ameen’s uneasy stand of 9(20) in the seventh over to give Sri Lanka the second wicket.
When Pakistan reached the 10-over mark without losing any more wickets, the captain and Omaima Sohail shared the crease. At the midway point, the team had 62/2.
After that, Kavisha Dilhari stopped Sohail, giving Sri Lanka its third wicket. Nida Dar, who was the match’s standout performer, came in at number four and shared a 42-run partnership with the Pakistani captain.
Maroof had a fantastic inning and appeared to be bringing the club home, but he was struck out just as the team was about to win. She observed Sugandika Kumari knocking over the hee wood to create a gap for Sri Lanka.
As the game entered its final few overs, they struck again to dismiss Ayesha Naseem in the 19th over, heightening the tension and excitement.
In order to guarantee an India-Pakistan Asia Cup final, Pakistan needed nine runs off the final over, however, they struggled in that over, eliminating them from the competition.
Pakistan simply couldn’t locate the gaps and lost wickets at vital moments, making it impossible for the squad to find boundaries in the last overs.
Nida Dar could only manage one run on the decisive ball, giving Sri Lanka a thrilling victory and setting up the championship match with India on Saturday, October 15. It needs three runs of the final ball to win the match and two to force a super over.
Brief score: Pakistan 121/6 (Bismah Maroof 42, Nida Dar 26; Inoka Ranaweera 2/17) vs. Sri Lanka 122/6 (Harshitha Madavi 35, Anushka Sanjeewani 26; Nashra Sandhu 3/17).
