Media calls Sri Lanka ‘flop of Asia’

Afghanistan Monday announced a 16-man squad for the three-match Twenty20 international series against Sri Lanka, aiming to prepare strongly for this year's World Cup.

Ibrahim Zadran will continue to lead the squad as regular Twenty20 skipper Rashid Khan is still recovering from a back surgery.

The three matches will be played -- all in Dambulla -- on February 17, 19 and 21 February following the conclusion of one-day international series on Wednesday.

Missing Rashid badly, Afghanistan lost the one-off Test and trail the three-match ODI series 2-0 against hosts Sri Lanka.

Afghanistan's chief selector Ahmad Shah Sulimankhil said the Twenty20 World Cup is the target.

"We have a close eye on the upcoming T20 World Cup for which we want to prepare a very good mix of players consisting of both juniors and seniors," Sulimankhil is quoted in a Afghanistan Cricket Board release.

"This series alongside the three T20Is against Ireland in March is a good opportunity for us to test our bench strength and finalise a good squad for the mega event."

The Twenty20 World Cup will be held in the United States and the West Indies in June this year.

Another key spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman also misses out on the squad after sustaining a sprain in his right hand before the start of the ODI series against Sri Lanka.

Fast bowler Mohammad Saleem Safi, who was part of the Afghanistan squad for the India tour last month, has been left out due to a hamstring strain and is replaced by Wafadar Momand.

Squad: Ibrahim Zadran (captain), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Mohammad Ishaq Rahimi, Hazratullah Zazai, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Azmatullah Omarzai, Karim Janat, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Fareed Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Noor Ahmad, Wafadar Momand, Qais Ahmad

Afghanistan won the toss and asked Sri Lanka to bat first in a crucial encounter in the ICC ODI World Cup at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune today.

Both teams have won two and lost three so far in the tournament and are still in the race for a spot in the semifinal.

The winner of today's match will take the fifth spot in the points-table, two points behind No.4 Australia.

Afghanistan, who defeated Pakistan in their last game, have made one change, dropping leg-spinner Nur Ahmed in favour of pacer Fazalhaq Farooqi.

Sri Lanka, who are coming into the match on the back of consecutive victories over the Netherlands and England, made two changes, replacing Kusal Perera and Lahiru Kumara with Dimuth Karunaratne and Dushmantha Chameera.

SQUADS

Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kusal Mendis(w/c), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Angelo Mathews, Maheesh Theekshana, Kasun Rajitha, Dushmantha Chameera, Dilshan Madushanka

Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi(c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Ikram Alikhil(w), Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi

"If I get in the zone, I'll go for it."

The stump microphone caught Mahmudullah Riyad saying this to his partner Shakib Al Hasan in Bangla right before taking stance against off-spinner Dhananjaya De Silva to face the final ball of the 16th over in Bangladesh's chase against Sri Lanka in their ICC Men's T20 World Cup match in Dallas yesterday.

The required rate was below five runs per over at the time and the team was already five wickets down, meaning there was no real need to go for an extravagant shot, but Mahmudullah had already made up his mind.

Read more

Tigers end 16-year wait with SL triumph

Mahmudullah, however, could not "go for it" at the time but he finally got one "in the zone" in the first ball of the 19th over, when medium pacer Dasun Shanaka dished out a full toss which he dispatched to the stands, his only boundary in the innings, killing off a match which got unnecessary tense owing to some questionable batting.

In the end, Mahmudullah remained 16 not out off 13 balls following a steady 36 off 38 from Liton Das and a bold 20-ball 40 from Towhid Hridoy as Bangladesh got over the line with two wickets in hand in a nervy 125-run chase.

The low-scoring thriller had multiple twists and turns, with Bangladesh faltering in a chase that should've been much more straight-forward, accepted their captain.

"We gave our 120 percent. Last 10-15 days we have been making plans and all the fielders are doing their job. I think they bowled really well, but on a wicket like this we should have won this easily," said skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto after the match.

Sri Lanka had started the match brilliantly, plundering 53 runs in the Powerplay, thanks to Pathum Nissanka's 28-ball 47. But after Mustafizur Rahman, who eventually finished with 3-17, got the batter caught with his trademark cutter, it was all Bangladesh.

The bowlers conceded just 71 runs from the seventh to 20th over at a run-rate touch above five runs per over with leg-spinner Rishad Hossain claiming three wickets, being in with a chance to claim a hat-trick at one point, and injury returnee Taskin Ahmed taking 2-25.

The bowlers had set up the match wonderfully for the Tigers but the batters nearly threw it away multiple times, owing to a mixture of some brilliant bowling from Sri Lanka and sub-par batting.

Even Bangladesh's final runs in the chase came off an overthrow, after Mahmudullah was nearly run out going for a single, which would've seen the Tigers needing two runs with just one wicket in hand in the last over.

Bangladesh's win over Sri Lanka may not have been entirely convincing but it has already put the Tigers in a favourable position in the race to Super 8s.

Read more

We gave our 120%: Shanto

After the defeat to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka are staring down the barrel, as they now need to win against associates Nepal and the Netherlands by big margins and pray for a few upsets if they are to finish as one of the two top teams in Group D.

Sri Lanka's misery has opened the doors for Bangladesh as a couple of wins over the associates should be sufficient for them to progress. However, if this World Cup has shown anything, it's that the margin between the elites and the full members has shrunk and many associates have the ammunition to pull off surprises.

Nevertheless, in a campaign where not much was expected of them, Bangladesh now have a clear cut path to the next phase following their South Africa fixture as their final two group games will be played in the Caribbean pitches, which are closer to pitches back home.

The Tigers now can dare to dream.

Bangladesh managed to reignite their confidence after winning their opening T20 World Cup fixture against Sri Lanka in New York on Saturday. Having come under immense scrutiny in their build-up to the major event, Najmul Hossain Shanto's side seemed to have turned a corner and now eye a place into the Super 8s of the tournament following the thrilling win against the Lankans. With an encounter against South Africa up next, The Daily Star's podcast Pitch Perfect brings you a discussion about Bangladesh's chances to go through to the next stage.

Highlights

*Bangladesh possess a very bleak record against South Africa in T20Is as the Tigers are yet to win a game against the Proteas. The Tigers lost all eight of their encounters.

*Bangladesh have faced South Africa three times in T20 World Cups, suffering convincing defeats each time.

*Bangladesh's 104-run defeat against South Africa in Sydney in the 2022 T20 World Cup is their biggest margin of defeat in the tournament.

*Bangladesh opener Soumya Sarkar faces the challenge of not achieving the record of registering the most ducks in T20Is. With 13 ducks in 83 innings, Soumya is now tied at the top of the unwanted list with Ireland's Paul Stirling, who also managed the same number of ducks in 143 innings.