A class bowling show from Sai Kishore followed by explosive knocks from Ruturaj Gaikwad & Tilak Verma helped India to secure a spot in the Asian Games 2023 final by defeating Bangladesh by nine wickets on Friday.
India wrapped Bangladesh’s innings for just 96 runs
The match began with India winning the toss & opting to field first. The Indian spinners spun a lethal web of spin to rattle Bangladesh’s top order. They managed to reduce Bangladesh to 21-3 at the end of six overs. It was Sai Kishore, Washington Sundar & Tilak Verma who did the unexpected by reducing Bangladesh to 40-4 in the allotted 10 overs. Parvez Hossain Emon (23 in 32 balls) was the top run0-scorer till that point.
But he couldn’t go ahead for long & was soon dismissed. Wickets kept tumbling for Bangladesh but wicket-keeper batter Jaker Ali stayed unbeaten after scoring 24 runs off 29 balls. He got valuable support from Rakibul Hassan who scored 14 runs to help Bangladesh reach 96 runs in 20 overs at the loss of nine wickets.
For India, Sai Kishore starred with the ball by scalping 3 wickets for 12 runs. He got a valuable aid in Washington who scored 2-15. Others such as Tilak, Srshdeep, Shahbaz & Bishnoi scalped one wicket each.
Tilak-Gaikwad’s heroics guided India over the line in 9.2 overs
In reply, India lost opener Jaiswal early in the chase of 97 runs. Notably, the centurion of the previous clash went back to the hut for a four-ball duck. But things were controlled for India with Tilak & Gaikwad on the crease. The duo scored crucial runs for India guiding them to 68-1 in six overs. The duo played aggressively & helped India to chase 97 runs in just 9.2 overs.
Gaikwad opened his arms & returned with scores of unbeaten 40 in 26 balls laced with four fours & three sixes. He got valuable support from Tilak who scored an unbeaten 55 off 26 balls with two fours & six sixes. On the back of their stable heroic knock India made its way to the Asian Games 2023 Finals where they will face Afghanistan on October 7 to win a gold medal.
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