Asia Cup 2022: From underdogs to champions — what worked for Sri Lanka – Firstcricket News, Firstpost

Amid the huge financial turbulence, death of democracy, food and fuel shortage, political turmoil, and numerous other issues, the citizens of Sri Lanka found a reason to rejoice and celebrate courtesy of their 11 worthy heroes on a cricket pitch as Dasun Shanaka’s men thrashed Pakistan by 23 runs to win their sixth Asia Cup title in Dubai on Sunday.

Sri Lanka players outdid themselves at the continental tournament to announce their revival, especially in the T20 format, where they had become world champions back in 2014. From losing their first game to being undefeated thereafter, Sri Lanka’s journey in the Asia Cup 2022 will be remembered for a very long time and will serve as an inspiration for many other teams including India, who despite having all the firepower failed to even make it to the final.

Whether it’s the Asian Cricket Council or the general public of Dubai, everyone wanted an Indo-Pak final but the gutsy cricketers from the island nation earned their right to be in the summit clash and deserved to lift the trophy.

Here we take a look at what worked for Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup 2022:

Fearless cricket: Despite suffering an embarrassing defeat in their tournament opener against Afghanistan, Sri Lanka didn’t shy away from playing fearless cricket and expressing themselves on the field, which put their campaign back on track.

They suffered just one loss on their way to lifting the Asia Cup 2022 trophy. After losing to Afghanistan early on, they defeated Bangladesh in their do-or-die group stage match and then went on to get their revenge in the Super Four stage and handed the Mohammad Nabi-led side an upsetting defeat.

Shanaka’s team showed dominant performances against defending champions India and high-flying Pakistan to remain unbeaten throughout the Super Four stage, bagging a victory in all their three fixtures.

Even in the final, Babar Azam-led side was the favourite to win the elusive title, but Sri Lanka made sure that the tournament which started on a low for them, ends on a high.

“After the first game against Afghanistan, they played brilliant cricket and they peaked at the right time. Also, they were not favourites in the tournament. Being underdogs in the tournament helped Sri Lanka to play a fearless brand of cricket. They did not take any pressure on them,” former India cricketer Wasim Jaffer said during a show on CricTracker.

Never-say-die attitude: There was a point in the game when Sri Lanka never looked like the favourites to win the tournament, but the tables turned and the perspective changed, thanks to the fighting spirit and their never-say-die attitude shown by them.

After losing their tournament opener, Sri Lanka won all their matches in emphatic style, three of them in last-over finishes.

They held their nerves to chase down the target of 184 runs against Bangladesh with two wickets in hand and four balls remaining, while Shanaka’s side, which was chasing a 176-run target against Afghanistan in Super Four stage, registered the win with only five balls remaining.

Against India, Sri Lanka crossed the finishing line with just one ball remaining as they chased down a 174-run target.

Even in the final, the island nation was five down for 67 at the halfway mark but still, they didn’t lose the plot and put Pakistan on the back-foot in the death overs as they slammed 50 runs in the last four to set up a challenging 171-run target.

Moreover, Pakistan were very much in the game during the chase as at the end of 15 overs, the Men in Green were at 101/3, but Sri Lanka once again turned around the match by reducing the Azam’s side to 112/7 at the end of the 17^th over and ultimately bundling Pakistan out for 147 to clinch the trophy.

Sri Lanka played as a team: Sri Lanka played as a unit and they weren’t dependent on individual performances to win games.

Even without Dushmantha Chameera, the bowling attack looked potent. Mahesh Theekshana proved to be a strong spin bowling partner of Wanindu Hasaranga, who finished the tournament as the second leading wicket-taker, while Dilshan Madhushanka shouldered the responsibility of the lead pacer quite admirably.

However, what stunned everyone was the fact that how impactful Sri Lanka’s top five batters proved to be in the tournament. Two right-handed openers, Kusal Mendis and Pathum Nissanka had been positivity personified at the top while the likes of Danushka Gunathilaka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Shanaka himself and Chamikaatne Karunaratne all made runs that matter.

A case in point was how they chased down a target of 170 odd against Afghanistan, where none of the batters scored more than 35 but all of them made those runs at a strike-rate of 150 plus.

The Lankans didn’t have true star power, which is evident in the fact that despite them having won the most matches in the tournament, none of their batters are in the top three run makers, but as a team, they produced a show which no other team in the tournament couldn’t replicate.

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