3rd Match, Group B, Asia Cup at Abu Dhabi, Sep 17 2018

Rahmat, spinners knock Sri Lanka out of Asia Cup

Three days into the tournament, Sri Lanka have become the first team to crash out of the Asia Cup, hurtling to a shock 91-run defeat against Afghanistan, who had hauled themselves to 249 on the back of Rahmat Shah's 72, then defended doggedly with the ball, extracting maximum benefit from Sri Lanka's copious batting mistakes. The win means Afghanistan are through to the Super Four stage of the tournament, along with Bangladesh.

It was in the field and with the bat that Sri Lanka dug their own grave, as had been the case on Saturday against Bangladesh. Another catch was dropped off the opposition's top-scorer, while run-out chances were missed, and ground fielding continued to be sloppy. Then, with bat in hand, Sri Lanka never seemed to have the measure of the target. Kusal Mendis was out second ball, trapped lbw by a drifting Mujeeb Ur Rahman delivery. And although at times Sri Lanka threatened to build partnerships, they somehow found ways to self-destruct. There were two run-outs in the innings, several strange and fatal shot choices, and an overall theme of inadequacy and mayhem to the innings.

As expected, Afghanistan's trio of match-turning spinners wreaked havoc, but right-arm seamer Gulbadin Naib also shared in the fun. Naib, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb and Mohammad Nabi took two wickets apiece, with all four of these bowlers conceding comfortably less than four an over. So comprehensive was this victory, that you would never guess Sri Lanka were the team who have won this tournament five times, and the opposition were the upstarts. Afghanistan seemed in control of this game from the very outset, when they put on 57 for the first wicket. Their only wobble was in the final 10 overs of their innings, when they managed only 66 runs, and lost seven wickets.