In what was a performance for the ages, India produced a dream show with the ball with their pacers starring in a dramatic win over Sri Lanka in the final of the Asia Cup 2023 in Colombo on Sunday. The record-breaking win saw the entire contest last just 21.3 overs with India leaving Sri Lanka in a haze while dominating across departments.
Jasprit Bumrah was the one who sparked a dramatic collapse that left Sri Lankan fans in a deafening silence at the R Premadasa Stadium. Bumrah picked up a wicket with the third delivery of the contest and then Mohammed Siraj picked up from there with a sensational over in which he sent as many as four Sri Lankan batters back in the dressing room.
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In a matter of minutes, Sri Lanka were reduced to a sorry 12/6 before their lower order somehow dragged them to 50 even as wickets kept tumbling.
Left with 51 to chase and extend their domination in Asia Cup, India sealed the win in style, needing just 6.1 overs to do the job as youngsters Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan completed the formalities with a flurry of boundaries.
Rohit Emulates Dhoni and Azhar
While it was India’s eighth Asia Cup title win, it was the second time that they are bringing home the trophy under Rohit Sharma. In 2018, when Virat Kohli was the captain across formats, Rohit took the charge when the former took a break from international cricket.
Incidentally, even then the tournament was played in the one-day format as India won their seventh ever title, beating Bangladesh in a dramatic final.
Rohit thus is the third Indian after MS Dhoni and Mohammad Azharuddin to have won more than one Asia Cup as a captain. Dhoni won the title thrice as a skipper while Rohit and Azhar achieved the feat twice.
End of a Five-year Wait
It’s also the first time that India have won a multi-nation trophy since the 2018 Asia Cup in UAE. Rohit was the captain on both occasions and he thus brought an end to the five-year trophyless run too.
What’s Next?
Indian players will have a little time to relax as they now gear up for a three-match ODI series against Australia at home starting September 22.
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