Nizakat Khan played an important innings of 52 runs unbeaten off 38 balls as that innings guided Hong Kong to 149/4 in 20 overs. After Anshuman Rath got 48 and Zeeshan Ali got 23 at the top, Nizakat Khan played an important hand to take Hong Kong to 149/4 in 20 overs and have given themselves a fighting chance in the match on a slow low pitch.
For Sri Lanka, Dushmantha Chameera picked up 2/29 in 4 overs while Wanindu Hasaranga finished with 1/27 in 4 overs while Dasun Shanaka picked up a wicket in his only over for 5 runs. Sri Lanka did well and will fancy chasing 150 down in the end one feels.
Zeeshan Ali & Anshuman Rath gives Hong Kong a steady start in the powerplay
Put into bat first, Zeeshan Ali and Anshuman Rath came out to bat for Hong Kong while Nuwan Thushara had ball in hand for Sri Lanka. Zeeshan was given out LBW but he reviewed it to get the decision overturned in his favour. Zeeshan hit Thushara for a streaky boundary past Kusal Mendis. Dushmantha Chameera came onto bowl from the other end. Rath hit him for a boundary through cover point region.
Thushara gave away 4 leg byes to the batting side. Zeeshan hit a boundary by flicking behind square for a boundary. Maheesh Theekshana came into the attack next. He bowled a decent first over as Mendis missed a stumping opportunity against Ali off a wide. Chameera got rid of breakthrough as he dismissed Zeeshan Ali for 23 off 17 balls with 2 fours to his name.
Short of a good length around the fifth stump line with a hint of extra bounce for Chameera. Zeeshan hung back and looked to play the short arm jab. He got a top edge that went straight up in the air. Kusal Mendis settled underneath it to take the catch. Babar Hayat came out to bat next. Theeskhana bowled the last over before powerplay as Hayat survived a scare as the DRS was not taken as the replays showed he was out. After 6 overs, Hong Kong were 42/1 and had a solid platform to build on.
Anshuman Rath & Nizakat Khan takes Hong Kong forward to 112/2 in 15 overs.Â
Wanindu Hasaranga came into the attack post the powerplay. Rath welcomed him with a boundary through deep midwicket and deep backward square leg. Captain Charith Asalanka came into the attack next. He bowled a steady over. Hasaranga got the breakthrough getting rid of Babar Hayat for 4 off 10 balls. He flighted the ball on middle and leg stump which was a googly from Hasaranga. Hayat danced down the track and swung his bat across the line. He got beaten on the inside edge to the keeper. Kusal Mendis failed to collect the ball cleanly and did well to recover quickly to pick up the ball and broke the stumps in a flash. Hayat was short of his crease. Nizakat Khan came to the crease next.
Asalanka bowled another tidy over as Hong Kong reached 62/2 in 10 overs when the players paused for the Drinks Break. Nizakat Khan stepped out and launched it over long-on for the maximum. Rath then went inside out over extra cover over Asalanka for a boundary. Nizakat slammed Asalanka straight down the ground through long-on for a boundary. Nuwan Thushara came back into the attack next.
Rath was hit on the elbow and got some magic spray to remove the pain. Nizakat put away the full toss through backward point region for a boundary. Theekshana bowled a wide to Rath and the keeper missed a stumping as Rath was out of his crease. The 100 came up for Hong Kong in 13.3 overs. Nizakat managed to cut Theekshana away through the backward point region for a boundary.
The 50-run stand came up between the two players. Rath hit Hasaranga through the covers for a boundary as he looked good out there. After 15 overs, Hong Kong were decently placed at 112/2 and an important five overs awaits us now.
Nizakat Khan’s unbeaten half-century takes Hong Kong to a competitive 149/4 in 20 overs
Chameera returned to the attack as Nizakat muscled him away past mid-off for a boundary. Chameera then got rid of Anshuman Rath for 48 off 46 balls with 4 fours to his name. Chameera bowled on a good length angled away from the southpaw with pace off the ball, Rath swiped across with vehemence and found Kamindu Mendis at the deep in front of square leg. He tumbled after completing the catch but made sure he did not spill it. Captain Yasim Murtaza came into bat next.
Nuwan Thushara bowled a no ball as the catch from Kusal Perera in the third man region turned out to be null and void because of the error from the bowler. The free hit yielded a single. Murtaza picked things up and flicked it away over long leg for a boundary. Dasun Shanaka came into the attack next and got rid of Murtaza for 5 off 4 balls with a boundary to his name.
Shanaka bowled a hard length ball angled away from the left-hander. Murtaza slashed and failed to keep it along the turf. The ball curved in the air as it flew to Dushmantha Chameera at fine deep backward point. He made no mistake. Aizaz Khan came out to bat next and got off the mark straightaway. Chameera bowled the 19th over as Nizakat launched him down the ground over long-off for the maximum.
Theekshana came into bowl the final over as Nizakat Khan reached his half century off 36 balls. In the end, Hong Kong ended with 149/4 in 20 overs with Nizakat’s innings consisted off 4 fours and 2 sixes to his name as he remained unbeaten on 52 off 38 balls. Aizaz Khan is unbeaten on 4 off 6 balls. 13 extras given by the fielding side.
Dushmantha Chameera was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 2/29 in 4 overs. Wanindu Hasaranga chipped in with 1/27 in 4 overs. Dasun Shanaka bowled an over and finished with 1/5 in 1 over. Maheesh Theekshana bowled 4 overs for 22 runs while Nuwan Thushara went for 36 runs in 4 overs. The target for Sri Lanka is 150 runs to win in 20 overs to make it 2 wins out of 2 games.
What Lies Ahead
So, Hong Kong have done well to get to 149/4 in 20 overs after being asked to bat first. It’s a slow pitch and so this 150 chase won’t be a cakewalk. Sri Lanka has the batting pedigree to chase this but Hong Kong will not go down without a fight. Expecting a close contest tonight. Maybe Sri Lanka due to their experience at this level will start as favourites in the chase.
Let’s see how the run chase pans out in Dubai which is a challenging pitch for all involved. It should be a good chase.
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