They came into the 2012 Asia Cup as favourites to win the tournament on the back of a strong showing in the Commonwealth Bank Series in Australia, but Sri Lanka will now be taking an early flight home following another disappointing performance against Pakistan that all but ended their hopes of making the finals.

Sri Lanka do still stand a mathematical chance, but they have only themselves to blame for a second straight loss in the tournament. Mahela Jayawardene opted to make first use of the wicket after batting first but a scratchy start saw them slip to 65/4 in the 15th over. Upul Tharanga and Kumar Sangakarra began a rescue act, but like it did against India, the powerplay began their downfall. Sri Lanka’s inability to read Saeed Ajmal’s doosra cost them dear as the last six wickets fell for 27, leaving their bowlers a paltry 189 to chase. Aizaz Cheema accounted for the top three Sri Lankan batsmen and also picked up the last to finish with 4/43.

Pakistan’s batting has not been their strongest asset in recent times and Sri Lanka, with Lasith Malinga back in their attack, would have fancied their chances after they slipped to 33/3 in the 13th over. However skipper Misbah Ul Haq and the vastly talented Umar Akmal began a repair job and slowly but surely took the match out of Sri Lanka’s reach.

Pakistan reached 100 in the 26th over but Misbah and Umar then began a display of power hitting that saw them pick up the remaining runs at a brisk pace. The power play yielded 41 runs with the loss of a wicket, that of Umar, but his 150 run partnership with Misbah had done enough to take Pakistan home.

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Posted on March 15th, 2012 by admin
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