Team India Coast To Asia Cup Triumph Riding Siraj’s Magical Spell

Colombo: India coasted to a 10-wicket victory against Sri Lanka on Sunday to lift the Asia Cup for the eighth time.

The overflowing crowd at Premadasa Stadium didn’t know what hit them as Mohammad Siraj (6/21) brought Sri Lankan batsmen to their knees with one of the most magical spells in ODI history. The fiery pacer dismissed 4 Lankan batsmen in an over to skittle out the home team for a meagre 50, the 10th lowest total in this format of international cricket.

Five Lankan batsmen fell without scoring, with two of them registering ‘golden ducks’.

It was a walk in the park for Indian openers Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan as they chased down the paltry target in 6.1 overs.

The 50-overs-a-side contest was done and dusted in 21.3 overs! As Indian allrounder remarked after the match, the final was over within the blink of an eye.

Brief scores: Sri Lanka 50 all out in 15.2 overs (Kusal Mendis 17; Md Siraj 6/21, Hardik Pandya 4/4, Jasprit Bumrah 1/23). India 51/0 in 6,1 overs (Shubman Gill 27*, Ishan Kishan 23*).

Result: India won by 10 wickets.