Sri Lanka grab four-wicket victory over Hong Kong

Sri Lanka grab four-wicket victory over Hong Kong

Sri Lanka thumped Hong Kong by four wickets in the eighth match of the ACC Men’s T20 Asia Cup 2025 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Monday.

Chasing a modest 150-run target, the defending champions eventually hit the winning runs for the loss of six wickets and seven balls to spare despite Hong Kong’s spirited comeback.

The defending champions were comfortably placed at 119/2 in 15 overs, needing just 31 off 30 deliveries with set batter Nissanka at the crease.

But the opening batter’s dismissal on the first delivery of the 16th over sparked a collapse which saw Sri Lanka lose three more wickets in quick succession and consequently slipped to 127/6 in 17.1 overs.

But Wanindu Hasaranga turned the tide back in Sri Lanka’s favour with a blistering cameo, scoring 20 not out from just nine deliveries, featuring two fours and a six, and led the holders to their second consecutive victory in the eight-team tournament.

Captain Yasim Murtaza was the standout bowler for Hong Kong, taking two wickets for 37 runs in his four overs, while Ayush Shukla, Ehsan Khan and Aizaz Khan made one scalp apiece.

Put into bat first, the associate nation registered 149/4 in their allotted 20 overs.

Hong Kong got off to a decent start to their innings as their opening pair of Zeeshan Ali and Rath yielded 41 runs before the former fell victim to Dushmantha Chameera on the penultimate delivery of the fifth over.

The wicketkeeper batter scored 23 off 17 deliveries with the help of two fours.

Hong Kong lost another wicket 23 balls later when Wanindu Hasaranga got Babar Hayat (four) stumped and consequently slipped to 57/2 in 8.4 overs.

Rath was then joined by Nizakat Khan in the middle, and the duo bolstered Hong Kong’s total by putting together 61 runs in just 43 deliveries.

The crucial stand culminated in the 16th over when Chameera got Rath caught at deep mid-wicket. The left-handed batter remained a notable run getter for Hong Kong with 48 off 46 deliveries, laced with four boundaries.

Nizakat, on the other hand, carried his bat until the end and top scored with an unbeaten 52 off 38 deliveries with the help of four fours and two sixes.

Chameera was the standout bowler for Sri Lanka, picking up two wickets for 30 runs in his four overs, while Hasaranga and Dasun Shanaka chipped in with one scalp apiece.