Clinical Sri Lanka outclass Bangladesh in Asia Cup: Key stats
What's the story
Sri Lanka made easy work of Bangladesh in Match number 5 of the Men's T20 Asia Cup 2025. The match held in Abu Dhabi saw Bangladesh post a total of 139 runs for the loss of five wickets. They were 0/2 after the 1st two overs and then 53/5 after 9.5 overs. Jaker Ali and Shamim Hossain's unbeaten 86-run stand helped them in the end. In response, the Lankans got the job done, starting their Asia Cup 2025 journey in style.
Top-order woes
Bangladesh manage 30/3 in the powerplay
Bangladesh's top-order struggled against Sri Lanka's bowlers. Openers Tanzid Hasan and Parvez Hossain Emon failed to get off the mark before being dismissed. While Nuwan Thushara dismissed Tanzid, Dushmantha Chameera got rid of Emon. Towhid Hridoy was then run out to leave Bangladesh reeling at 9/3. Bangladesh got to 30/3 in their powerplay overs. Thereafter, Mahedi Hasan and Litton Das departed as well to leave their side struggling at 53/5.
Recovery act
Shamim, Jaker steady Bangladesh innings
At 53/5, Bangladesh were in plenty of trouble. Shamim and Jaker got together and bailed the side out. Shamim remained unbeaten on 42 while Jaker scored a steady 41 not out. Their partnership of an unbeaten 86 runs helped the Tigers get some much needed respite. Besides them, Litton also contributed with a quickfire 28 off just 26 balls, hitting four boundaries in the process.
Bowling brilliance
Sri Lanka's bowlers shine in 1st innings
Sri Lanka's bowlers, led by spinner Wanindu Hasaranga, wreaked havoc on Bangladesh's batting line-up. Hasaranga, returning from a hamstring injury, made an immediate impact with two wickets. Pacers Thushara and Chameera also played crucial roles in Bangladesh's early downfall. The duo took one wicket each while maintaining tight bowling figures. Thushara clocked 1/17 from his 4 overs (1 maiden). Chameera also posted the exact figure. Hasaranga managed 2/25 from his 4 overs.
Litton
Litton Das becomes second Bangladesh batter with 2,500 T20I runs
Bangladesh skipper Litton brought up 2,500 runs in the T20I format. He reached the milestone with his fourth run. Notably, Litton became only the second Bangladesh batter to accomplish this landmark. Playing his 112th T20I match since his debut in 2015 (110 innings), Litton has raced to 2,524 runs at a paltry average of 24-plus, as per ESPNcricinfo. Meanwhile, Shakib Al Hasan (2,551) is now the only batter with more T20I runs for Bangladesh.
Information
Hasaranga races to 133 T20I wickets
Hasaranga's 2/25 saw him get to 133 scalps from 80 T20I matches at 15.36. Versus Bangladesh, he has 8 wickets from 5 matches at 19.87. Overall in T20 cricket, the spinner owns 319 wickets from 228 matches at 17.32.
Chase
Sri Lanka get the job done
Sri Lanka lost Kusal Mendis early on (13/1) before Pathum Nissanka and Kamil Mishara added 95 runs for the 2nd wicket. Nissanka departed right after getting to a fifty. He scored a 34-ball 50 (4s: 6, 6s: 1). Kusal Perera came in and scored 9 runs with Mahedi Hasan dismissing him. Dasun Shanaka also suffered an early dismissal. However, Kamil was there till the end to ensure a win. For Bangladesh, Mustafizur Rahman, Mahedi and Tanzim Hasan Sakib were amongst the wickets.
Information
2,000 T20I runs for Nissanka
Nissanka's 50 saw him get to a tally of 2,000 runs in T20Is. This was his 16th fifty from 69 matches. He averages 30.76 (SR: 123.60). Nissanka now owns 49 sixes in T20Is.
Records
Contrasting records for the two teams
As per Cricbuzz, this is the first time Bangladesh lost two wickets without a run in T20Is. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka have reduced teams to 0/2 thrice after they did against Pakistan in 2012 and against England in the 2014 T20 World Cup. This is the seventh time a side has clocked two maidens from the first two overs in a T20I innings. It's the third time for a Full Member team after West Indies against Zimbabwe in 2010 and Australia against UAE in 2018.