Sri Lanka face Pakistan in Asia Cup final precursor

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By Shanuka Aravinda reporting from Dubai

In what is effectively a dress rehearsal for Sunday’s Asia Cup final, Sri Lanka will face Pakistan in the final match of the Super 4 stage, at the Dubai International Stadium today.

Even if this match has no consequence on the tournament, will surely be a shot in the arm for the winning team heading into Sunday’s final.

Both teams have done remarkably well to put behind defeats in their opening matches, to qualify for the title decider.

It could also provide an opportunity for either team to test their bench strength, resting key players, but it is uncertain if it is a route Sri Lanka will look to go down for today’s match.

“We hope to play this match like a normal match. They haven’t talked about the changes yet. Our main goal in this match is to try and identify the weaknesses of Pakistani batsmen. It will be a big advantage for our bowlers in the final match,” Sri Lanka’s spin coach Piyal Wijetunga said yesterday. It also allows Vice Captain Charith Asalanka another opportunity to break out of his slump in form, having scored 0, 1, 8, 0 in the tournament so far.
Pakistan and Sri Lanka have faced each other in 21 matches in T20IS, with Pakistan having the better on 13 occasions, while Sri Lanka has won the remaining eight matches. However Sri Lanka swept the three-match T20I series between the teams in Lahore in 2019.

Sri Lanka squad: Dasun Shanaka (c), Danushka Gunathilaka, Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Ashen Bandara, Dhananjaya de Silva, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Jeffrey Vandersay, Praveen Jayawickrama, Chamika Karunaratne, Dilshan Madushanka, Matheesha Pathirana, Asitha Fernando,Pramod Madushan

Pakistan squad: Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Qadir, Mohammad Hasnain, Hasan Ali.