The Pakistan cricket team is alive in the Asia Cup 2025 after a thumping win over Sri Lanka. The dashing all-rounder Hussain Talat played an invaluable knock of 32 runs in 30 balls & struck 4 fours. Even with the ball in hand, Hussain Talat produced one of the deadliest spells as he took 2 wickets and conceded 18 runs in his 3-over spell. Pakistan chased down the 134-run target with 2 overs left and 5 wickets in hand.
The Sri Lankan cricket team would be in a state of shock. The island nation was considered one of the red-hot favorites to win the marquee tournament, but their side failed to clinch key moments. Sri Lanka’s next & last match is against India on Friday, which is no less than a dead rubber & they would be keen to play for pride and win the contest and spoil the party of India.
Kamindu Mendis’ staggering half century only bright spot for Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka got off to a horrendous start as in the powerplay overs, the batters: Kusal Mendis, Pathum Nissanka & Kusal Perera were sent back to the pavilion very cheaply. Shaheen Afridi was spitting fire as there was sheer precision in his line & length and approach. At the end of powerplay overs, Sri Lanka scored 53 runs but lost 3 wickets in the first phase of their innings.
There were huge expectations from the skipper Charith Asalanka, who got a start but failed to make the most out of it. Charith Asalanka was undone by a bumper delivery bowled by Hussain Talat in the 8th over of the match. It can be said that Hussain Talat came out of the blue for Sri Lanka, who didn’t have express pace but showed good control over his line & length.
Kamindu Mendis needed support from the rest of his mates, but they were blatantly seen struggling on a spicy wicket. The surface in the middle overs became no less than a minefield. Abrar Ahmed’s variations were very tough to pick who had a remarakable outing where he conceded mere 8 runs in his 4 over spell.
Sri Lanka’s score at the end of 10 overs was 70-5 in 10 overs. There was a ray of hope given Wanindu Hasaranga & Kamindu Mendis were at the crease, who were slowly getting into the groove. Sri Lanka didn’t have a not so single 45+ runs partnership in their innings which hurt them massively.
Skipper Salman Ali Agha would have been a bit dejected, given Sri Lanka ended their innings on a good note as they scored 45 runs in the last 5 overs. The middle overs phase, though, hurt Sri Lanka as from 7-15 overs, they scored 35 runs & lost 3 wickets, as another atleast 15-20 runs could have taken the total in excess of 150+ runs.
The lethal speedster Shaheen Afridi set the tone earlier as his opening spell burst is very critical for Pakistan to win the match. Though there are some concerning signs for Pakistan, Haris Rauf was taken to the cleaners, who conceded 37 runs as his 2-wicket haul gets somewhat overshadowed due to expensive figures.
Hussain Talat’s unbeaten match-winning knock knocks off Sri Lanka
Pakistan needed a brisk start and most critically not to lose wickets in packets, and they did that. Fakhar Zaman & Farhan Sahibzada were a bit cautious in the first 2 overs as the surface was quite treacherous. In the 3rd over, though, Nuwan Tushara was targeted as he was whacked all around the park and scored 18 runs from his over, and the score was 26-0 in 3 overs.
Maheesh Theekshana wasn’t able to extract turn & control his line & length as well. Pakistan got off to a flyer, we can say, as they needed 91 runs to win from 15 overs. Then Maheesh Theekshana sent back both Zaman & Farhan in the same over as the decision to bowl yorker deliveries got the results as both the batters didn’t get the elevation and gave a catch to the mid off fielder.
Sahibzada Farhan & Fakhar Zaman were quite intrepid in their shot selection, and despite Pakistan’s score being 48-2 in 6 overs, they were in a state of ascendancy. Saim Ayub’s struggles continued even in the middle order after yet another single-digit score. Wanindu Hasaranga was proving to be unplayable. It was quite clear that Sri Lanka can most likely win only if they bundle out Pakistan.
Against all odds, there was a roaring comeback of Sri Lanka. Wanindu Hasaranga sent back Salman Ali Agha in the 9th over, as there are now serious questions over Salman Ali Agha’s place in the team as a batter. At the halfway stage of the match, Pakistan required 63 runs to win from the last 10 overs as the equation was well in control, but a couple of more wickets would have made the contest more enthralling.
11th & 12th over changed the fortunes for Pakistan, who accumulated 20 runs from it. Charith Asalanka’s decision to bring in Dushamantha Chameera for the 12th over paid the dividends. Mohammad Haris was cleaned up by an inswining delivery. Pakistan required another 54 runs to win in 53 balls (*8.5 overs).
It was a tricky situation for both Mohammad Nawaz & Hussain Talat. Pakistan still had batting left in the form of Faheem Ashraf & Shaheen Afridi, but the surface wasn’t a belter one as Mohammad Nawaz & Hussain Talat had to grind before unleashing an attack on the opposition team.
Hussain Talat, in particular, was quite calm in his batting approach. In the last 7 overs, the Men in Green needed 47 runs to win & slowly the pressure was mounting. Mohammad Nawaz took a bold step by taking on Wanindu Hasaranga, and he hit him 2 fours, which were no less than gold-dust.
It can be said that there was a cat-and-mouse fight going on in every over between Pakistan & Sri Lanka. The Men in Green needed a run a ball 30 runs in 30 balls to take invaluable 2 points. Hussain Talat quite easily picked Wanindu Hasaranga’s googly and hit him for 2 fours in the over and bringing down the equation to 14 runs to win from 3 overs. Wanindu Hasaranga’s 17th over was a tad expensive as he gave away 12 runs, which was massive in the context of the match.
Mohammad Nawaz then wrapped up the game in the 18th over itself by smashing 3 monstrous sixes. Pakistan chased down 134 runs with ease as the match-winning partnership of 58 runs in 41 balls between Hussain Talat & Mohammad Nawaz was one of the key differences in the end for Pakistan.
Sri Lanka’s decision to play Chamika Karunaratne didn’t work well at all. Chamika Karunaratne, while having the bat in hand, scored 17 runs in 21 balls, and with the ball in hand, he conceded 11 runs in his single over. Chamika Karunaratne got a chance to play 11 as Dunith Weallalage was dropped to bolster the batting and fast bowling departments which didn’t work out in the end.
Turning point
There’s no doubt that the first over (*8th over of the match) bowled by Hussain Talat changed the complexion of the match. Hussain Talat took two back-to-back wickets of Charith Asalanka & Dasun Shanaka, which put Sri Lanka on the back foot. All of a sudden score was 58-5 in 7.3 overs. The decision to bring in Hussain Talat into the bowling attack proved to be a kind of masterstroke for Pakistan.
Skipper Charith Asalanka perhaps missed the trick by not giving an over to Dasun Shanaka while defending the target. Charith Asalanka himself rolled his arm, but his wicket-column was empty. Perhaps the situation was so delicate that Asalanka couldn’t afford to give an over to Dasun Shanaka, but who knows, Shanaka might have brought back the spark in the match.
What lies ahead for Pakistan & Sri Lanka
Pakistan would be booming with confidence after winning their first match in the Super 4 stage. It can’t be said as a near perfect performance by Pakistan, but there is a ray of hope that Pakistan has started to peak a little bit. Pakistan’s next encounter is against Bangladesh on 25th September at Dubai, which can be said as a virtual semi-final clash for Pakistan.
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, will have to go back to the drawing board and find a match-winning combination. It was quite confusing to see why Sri Lanka’s batters were in a hurry to dominate the opposition, given that a target of around 170 could have been competitive. Head coach Sanath Jayasuriya would be under the scanner now, most likely, as before tourney, they were considered red-hot favorites.
Also Read: Asia Cup 2025: Kamindu Mendis Help Sri Lanka Recover From A Disastrous Start