Mirpur: India rode on fine knocks by Virat Kohli and Yuvraj Singh to defeat Sri Lanka by five wickets in their Asia Cup Twenty20 cricket match at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium here yesterday and enter the finals.
Coming in after the early fall of opener Shikhar Dhawan, Kohli anchored the innings with an unbeaten half-century as India overhauled the 139-run target with four balls to spare.
The Delhi lad remained not out on 56, with seven well-timed boundaries studding his 85-ball knock.
Yuvraj produced a power-packed innings, hitting 35 runs off 18 balls with three boundaries and an equal number of sixes.
India, who have won all the three matches they have played so far, thus assured themselves a spot in the final.
Nuwan Kulasekara was the most successful among the Sri Lankan bowlers with figures of 2/21.
Fittingly, Kohli hit the winning runs with a boundary off left-arm spinner Rangana Herath. Earlier, Sri Lanka produced a competitive total of 138/9 in their 20 overs.
For India, promising all-rounder Pandya (2/26), off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin (2/26) and young pacer Jasprit Bumrah (2/27) took two wickets each.
Veteran pacer Ashish Nehra (1/22), who bowled an excellent opening spell, also got a wicket.
Chamara Kapugedera (30) was the highest scorer among the Sri Lankan batsmen.
Asked to bat first on a greenish pitch, the Sri Lankan batsmen never really managed to settle down and lost wickets at regular intervals.
Sri Lanka suffered an early setback when opener Dinesh Chandimal was caught behind off Nehra’s bowling while attempting a big hit.
Bumrah piled on the pressure in the next over with a superb delivery which Shehan Jayasuriya edged to Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni behind the stumps.
Dhoni’s decision to bring Pandya into the attack in place of Nehra brought immediate results as the all-rounder got rid of the dangerous Tillakaratne Dilshan with his very first ball.
Pakistan will face Bangladesh today and if the hosts manage victory over the struggling Shahid Afridi’s men, they will meet India in March 6 final. IANS
