Bangladesh beat Sri Lanka by Four Wickets in Super Four Match

By Abhishek Kumar

Bangladesh started their Super Four campaign in style as they defeated Sri Lanka by four wickets in Dubai. Chasing 169 runs Bangladesh kept their nerves in the last over and won the match with just one ball remaining.

Sri Lanka batted first and scored 168 runs for the loss of seven wickets in 20 overs. Captain Dasun Shanaka was the top performer with an unbeaten 64 runs off 37 balls. The openers Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis gave a decent start but the middle order failed to build on it. Mustafizur Rahman was the star with the ball for Bangladesh taking three wickets for just 20 runs and keeping Sri Lanka under pressure.

In the chase Bangladesh looked confident from the beginning. Saif Hassan scored 61 runs from 45 balls while Towhid Hridoy played a brilliant knock of 58 runs in just 37 deliveries. Both added crucial runs to keep Bangladesh on track. However the game turned tense as wickets fell in the later stage. In the last over Bangladesh needed five runs. Jaker Ali smashed a boundary on the first ball but lost his wicket immediately after. Nasum Ahmed then kept calm and scored the winning run off the fifth delivery to seal the victory.

This win gave Bangladesh a strong start in the Super Four stage, while Sri Lanka suffered their first defeat of the tournament.