Afghanistan A beat Sri Lanka A by 7 wickets in final of Emerging Teams Asia Cup.© X/@ACBofficials
Afghanistan A crowned ACC Mens T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup 2024 champions after beating Sri Lanka A by seven wickets in the final at the Al Amerat Cricket Ground on Sunday. After winning the toss on Sunday, Sri Lanka skipper Nuwanidu Fernando won the toss and opted to bat. However, it did not help Sri Lanka to win the final. Sahan Arachchige (64 runs from 47 balls, 6 sixes) was the only standout batter for Sri Lanka as he stayed unbeaten on the crease and added some crucial runs on the scoreboard. Arachchige's pivotal role took Sri Lanka to 133/7 in the first inning.
Nimesh Vimukthi (23 runs from 19 balls, 1 four and 1 six) and Pawan Rathnayake (20 runs from 21 balls, 1 six) also helped Sri Lanka and contributed to adding runs.
Afghanistan dominated the game from the very first as they were successful in restricting Sri Lanka at 133/7. Bilal Sami led the Afghan bowling attack as he picked up three wickets from his four-over spell and gifted just 22 runs. Allah Ghazanfar also picked up two wickets in the first inning.
During the run chase, Zubaid Akbari (0 runs from 1 ball) and Sediqullah Atal (55 runs from 55 balls, 3 fours and 1 six) opened for the Afghans but it was not a great start from them while chasing. On the first ball of the second inning, Sri Lanka's Sahan Arachchige dismissed Akbari and put pressure on Afghanistan.
However, Afghanistan made a solid comeback after Atal and Darwish Rasooli (24 runs from 20 balls, 2 fours and 1 six) cemented a crucial partnership.
Karim Janat (33 runs from 27 balls, 3 sixes) and Mohammad Ishaq (16 runs from 6 balls, 1 four and 1 six) also displayed stupendous performance and helped Afghanistan to win the final. Mohammad Ishaq and Sediqullah Atal stayed on the crease to clinch a seven-wicket win in the final.
Sri Lanka's bowling attack showcased a sloppy performance as they failed to restrict the given target. Eshan Malinga, Dushan Hemantha and Sahan Arachchige were the only wicket-takers for Sri Lanka.
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