Asia Cup 2022, SL vs AFG: Afghanistan defeated Sri Lanka by eight wickets in the opening match of the Asia Cup at the Dubai International Stadium on Saturday.
In the opening match of the 2022 Asia Cup, Afghanistan defeated Sri Lanka by eight wickets in a fantastic all-round performance. The bowlers established the foundation by reducing Sri Lanka to 5 for 3, with Fazalhaq Farooqi being largely accountable for the destruction. Despite a 44-run partnership between Danushka Gunathilaka and Bhanuka Rajapaksa giving Sri Lanka a brief middle-order comeback, Afghanistan came back strongly and quickly ran through the lower order.
Despite Chamika Karunaratne's spirited late-inning resistance, Naveen-ul-Haq, Mujeeb ur Rehman, and Mohammad Nabi all contributed to the wickets, and Sri Lanka's total of 105 was woefully insufficient. Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Hazratullah Zazai scored 83 runs in the Powerplay alone, virtually putting an end to the game as a contest in just 10.1 overs for the Afghan openers.
Brief scores: Sri Lanka 105 in 19.4 overs (Bhanuka Rajapaksa 38, Chamika Karunaratne 31; Fazalhaq Farooqi 3/11, Mohammad Nabi 2/14) lost to Afghanistan106/2 in 10.1 overs (Rahmanullah Gurbaz 40, Hazratullah Zazai 37*; Wanindu Hasaranga 1/19) by 8 wickets