Asian Games (men's cricket): SL beat Bangladesh to win bronze
What's the story
Sri Lanka clinched the bronze medal in men's cricket at the Asian Games 2026, defeating Bangladesh by a whopping 63 runs. The match was played at the Aichi Prefectural Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin, Japan. Tharindu Ratnayake was the star of the show, scoring a blistering 65 off just 32 balls to lead his team's recovery after a rocky start. Here are further details.
Match details
Ratnayake's blistering knock propels Sri Lanka to a strong total
Opting to bat first, Sri Lanka found themselves in a precarious position at 29/4 in the powerplay.
However, Ratnayake's explosive innings turned the tide for his team.
He partnered with Sahan Arachchige (33 off 37 balls) in a crucial 50-run stand off just 26 balls.
Ratnayake reached his half-century in just 26 balls, hitting five fours and four sixes during the partnership.
Target set
Sri Lanka post a challenging total in Nisshin
Ratnayake's explosive innings helped Sri Lanka post a competitive total of 165/9 in their allotted overs.
He finished with an impressive score of 65 off just 32 balls, including seven fours and five sixes.
This was after Sri Lanka had lost four wickets for just 29 runs in the first six overs of the match.
Chase collapse
Bangladesh falter in run chase, get bowled out for 102
In response to Sri Lanka's challenging total, Bangladesh got off to a disastrous start with Nuwan Thushara dismissing Litton Das on the very first ball.
The team fell to 18/4 and never really recovered from there.
Despite some resistance from Nasum Ahmed (26) and Yasir Ali (21), Bangladesh was bowled out for just 102 runs in 17.3 overs, handing Sri Lanka a comprehensive victory.