Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka lauded his team for putting up a commendable effort in the tournament as they successfully reached the final.
Shanaka-led Sri Lanka will be up against India in the final of the Asia Cup 2023 at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday, September 17.
The defending champions are up for the challenge to stop the Rohit Sharma-led team from lifting their record eighth title as they aim to match their tally by clinching the trophy for the seventh time.
Shanaka emphasised that his team has only lost to India in the ongoing tournament.
The all-rounder credited the defending champions for their passion and fighting spirit in the match against India, where Dunith Wellalage’s five-wicket haul and Charith Asalanka’s four-wicket haul helped them bundle out the visitors for 213.
The young spinner Dunith Wellalage was unplayable on a particular day he registered his maiden five-wicket haul, dismissing the likes of Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, and Hardik Pandya.
“Yeah, Sri Lanka are peaking at the right time. You know the boys deliberately want to deliver for the country. As a team, we’ve been underdogs, so everyone wants to perform on the bigger stage. These youngsters need to show the world what they are capable of. That’s the secret of this young team,” Dasuna said in a pre-match press conference on Saturday.
Shanaka added that they would need to replicate their Super Four performance against India if they wanted to have a chance of winning the Asia Cup. Notably, India managed to pick up the victory by 41 runs against Sri Lanka in the close contest on the back of Kuldeep Yadav’s four wickets.
“Of course, we are ready [for the Asia Cup 2023 final]. See, it totally depends on the pitch. The pitches have been playing a part in this tournament. According to the pitch stats, we are picking a good side, especially bowling against India, we need to take more wickets upfront. That opens the game for us. That’s a key area in the game,” he added.
Sri Lanka defeated Pakistan in their last match by two wickets in a last-ball thriller as they gear up for their biggest challenge ahead of the ODI World Cup 2023 in India.
