Pathum Nissanka (50) and Kamil Mishara (46 not out) made light work of a modest target to power Sri Lanka to a six-wicket win against Bangladesh in their Group B match of the Asia Cup, here on Saturday.
After restricting Bangladesh to 139 for five, Sri Lanka crossed the finish line with 32 balls and six wickets to spare to record a commanding win, making 140 for four in 14.4 overs.
Even though Mustafizur Rahman (1/35) removed Kusal Mendis (3) in the second over for an early breakthrough, Bangladesh seamers neither managed to use the new ball to put further pressure nor could they stem the flow of runs as Sri Lanka raced to 55 for one in the powerplay.
Mishara had his share of luck when Mahedi Hasan dropped a tough chance off Shoriful Islam when the left-hander was on one in the fifth over with the fielder moving to his left from mid-on.
Mishara then went after Islam, hitting the left-arm seamer for 18 runs, including two fours and a six in the fifth over to mark a strong start to the chase.
Nissanka did not put a foot wrong as he began with a six over midwicket en route to his first half-century in the format against Bangladesh, and also completed his 2,000 runs in T20Is, scoring 50 off 34 balls with six fours and a six.
Nissanka’s 95-run (52 balls) stand for the second wicket with Mishara ended when he was caught by Islam off Mahedi Hasan, who also trapped Kusal Perera leg-before for his second wicket to return 4-0-29-2.
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Sri Lanka lost a few wickets in a flurry, slipping from 108 for one to 126 for four, but Charith Asalanka (10 not out) and Mishara finished the proceedings after the stutter.
Earlier, Shamim Hossain (42 not out) and Jaker Ali (41 not out) pulled a faltering Bangladesh to 139 for five from a precarious position.
Shamim and Jaker revived the Bangladesh innings, reeling at 54 for five halfway through, by putting on unbeaten 86 runs for the sixth wicket in a crucial stand, which saved the blushes for the side.
Sri Lanka began with two consecutive wicket-maidens upfront and did not take the foot off the pedal to stifle Bangladesh, with their seamers exploiting the conditions early on.
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Nuwan Thushara knocked down Tanzid Hasan Tamim’s (0) off stump in the first over and Dushmantha Chameera had Parvez Emon (0) caught behind in the second.
But the highlight was Kamil Mishara’s throw from deep square leg which found Towhid Hridoy (8) well short of his crease in the fifth over.
In the final over of the powerplay, Litton Das (28) took the attack to Dasun Shanaka, smacking three boundaries but it largely remained a one-way traffic in Sri Lanka’s favour.
Wanindu Hasaranga (2/25) maintained the pressure built by the Sri Lanka seamers, asking a lot of questions to the Bangladesh batters.
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To their credit, Shamim and Jaker did extremely well to punish the loose balls and rotate the strike while putting on the vital stand.
