Colombo | The Sri Lankan players who defeated Pakistan in a thrilling match and won the Asia Cup received a rousing welcome in their homeland. The team members who traveled in an open bus received greetings and cheers from the fans. Thousands of people flocked to the streets of the capital, Colombo, to cheer and join in the celebration. The Sri Lanka Cricket Board posted pictures of the jubilation on its official Twitter page.
Bhanuka Rajapaksa’s superb half-century bowling by spinner Vaninthu Hazrange and pacer Pramod Madhushan played a crucial role in guiding Sri Lanka to their sixth Asia Cup title. Lankan won by 23 runs in the final in Dubai.
Lanka, who were in a slump at the start, reached a manageable score thanks to the batting excellence of Rajapaksa (71) and Hazaranga (36). Lanka scored 170 runs for the loss by six wickets. In the bowling Vaninthu Hazaranga who took three wickets conceding only 27 runs and Pramod Madhushan who took four wickets conceding 34 runs shone. A 61-run stand by Mohammad Rizwan (55) and Iftikhar Ahmed (32) for Pakistan posed a threat, but they overcame it with excellent batting and errant fielding.
