India confirmed a Top 2 finish in the Asia Cup 2023 by defeating Sri Lanka on Tuesday night at the R Premadasa Stadium. Kuldeep Yadav was the hero for the Men in Blue. He bagged four wickets and helped India defend a 213-run score against Sri Lanka.
Rohit Sharma won the toss and decided to bat first at the R Premadasa Stadium. India got off to a great start, with captain Sharma smacking a half-century.
However, the Sri Lankan spinners brought their side back into the contest. Dunith Wellalage took five wickets, while Charith Asalanka bagged four as Sri Lanka bowled India out for 213.
Chasing 214 for a win, Sri Lanka lost wickets at regular intervals. Wellalage and Dhananajaya de Silva tried their best to guide the team home, but Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav’s brilliance denied Sri Lanka a win. Kuldeep finished with figures of 4/43 while Jadeja had 2/33.
India defeated Sri Lanka by 41 runs in the end. Courtesy of this win, India became the first team to have four points in the Asia Cup 2023 points table for the Super Four round.
India’s net run rate has reduced to +2.690, but that does not matter now because the Men in Blue have secured the elusive ‘Q’ in the table. Sri Lanka are second with two points and a net run rate of -0.200.
Bangladesh confirmed to finish in bottom 2 of Asia Cup 2023 Super Four points table
After India’s win over Sri Lanka, the match between Sri Lanka and Pakistan has now become a virtual semifinal. The winner of that game will play against India in the final on September 17.
Meanwhile, the India vs Bangladesh game has become a dead rubber. Even if Bangladesh register a big win, they will remain in the bottom two of the Asia Cup 2023 points table. Hence, Bangladesh are out of the tournament.