KABUL (Pajhwok): Sri Lanka and Pakistan have opened their Super-12 account in the ICC T20 World Cup, scripting sensational wins over their Asian rivals Bangladesh and India respectively.
The Green Shirts were known for their meltdowns against their arch-rivals in World Cup matches, having lost 12 straight matches to the Men in Blue.
They were underdogs heading into the game, with few giving them a chance. But they flipped the script and inflicted a chastening 10-wicket defeat on India.
A statement from ICC said it was the first time that either side had beaten the other by 10 wickets in a limited-overs fixture.
Chasing 152, openers Babar Azam (captain ) and Mohammad Rizwan made India’s ‘world class’ bowling attack look ordinary for once.
Speaking after the match, Indian captain Virat Kohli admitted his team “did not execute the things that we wanted to but credit is certainly due — they outplayed us today”.
He added: “They were very professional with the bat as well but we’re certainly not a team that presses the panic button, it’s the start of the tournament, not the end. It’s not over yet.”
Meanwhile, Azam said in a post-match comment: “We executed our plans well and the early wickets were very helpful.
“The plan with Rizwan was to keep it simple. We tried to get deep in the crease and from about the eighth over, the dew came in and the ball came on nicely. This is just the start, we have [the] confidence to build on this win,” he said.
In another ICC T20 clash, Sri Lanka got off to a winning start in the Super 12 stage as they beat Bangladesh by five wickets in their Group 1 clash at Sharjah on Sunday.
Player of the match Charith Asalanka (80 not out) and Bhanuka Rajapaksa (53) starred for the Lankans with a match-winning 86-run fifth wicket stand as the islanders reached their destination with seven balls to spare.
Earlier, riding on half centuries from Mohammad Naim and Mushfiqur Rahim, Bangladesh posted 171 runs for the loss of four wickets in 20 overs.
The Tigers got off to a solid start as Naim and Liton Das (16) put on 40, Bangladesh’s best opening wicket partnership in the T20 World Cup so far, after disappointing stands of eight, 11 and nought in the previous three games of the first round.
nh/mud
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