Asia Cup 2025 | Super Four: India vs Sri Lanka | Preview and Predictions
his match between India and Sri Lanka is a dead rubber, with both finalists of the 2025 Asia Cup confirmed after Pakistan’s victory over Bangladesh in the previous encounter.
Yet, India will not want their winning streak to come to an end just before the final and will be looking to make a statement. For their game against Sri Lanka, here are our preview and predictions.
Asia Cup 2025 | Super Four: IND vs SL | 20:00 IST, September 26
In the group stage, Sri Lanka won all their games and were tipped to be one of the contenders for the title. However, they struggled to get going in the Super Four, losing their first two games, while India — arguably the strongest team in the tournament — cruised to the final by winning their Super Four games against Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Against Pakistan, Sri Lanka batted first but could only manage 133/8 in their 20 overs. Their openers failed to deliver, and only Kamindu Mendis could manage to hold fort with a half-century along with captain Charith Asalanka (20 off 19). The Pakistani bowling attack looked lethal, with Shaheen Shah Afridi turning up with a spell of 3/28. He was supported ably by Haris Rauf and Hussain Talat, who took two wickets each.
In response, Pakistan stuttered early on and were reeling at 57/4 after eight overs before all-rounders Hussain Talat (32* off 30) and Mohammad Nawaz (38* off 24) took the game away from Sri Lanka, with Nawaz hitting some lusty blows towards the end. Pakistan reached the target in 18 overs. Wanindu Hasaranga was impressive in the early part of the innings, getting two early scalps to give Sri Lanka a glimmer of hope, but the Pakistan batters didn’t wilt under pressure.
On the other hand, opener Abhishek Sharma shone with the bat yet again for the Men in Blue in their last game, scoring 75 off 37 before getting run out. Shubman Gill scored a quickfire 29 off 19 balls, but no Indian batter barring Hardik Pandya (38 off 29) supported the openers. India still managed to get 168/6 in their 20 overs, as Rishad Hossain bowled incredibly well with figures of 2/27 in his four overs.
In response, Bangladesh never got going. Barring opener Saif Hassan’s (69 off 51) lone hand, wickets kept tumbling at the other end. Jasprit Bumrah (2/18), Kuldeep Yadav (3/18), and Varun Chakaravarthy (2/29) all impressed with the ball for India, who won comfortably by a margin of 41 runs.
However, there were warning signs for India in this match. While their openers have provided steady starts, the middle order has struggled. The Indian fielding has also left much to be desired, dropping far too many easy chances.
Though this game doesn’t hold much significance, Sri Lanka will want to bow out with a win. That said, even though India need some contributions from their middle order ahead of the final, on paper their line-up is simply too strong for them not to be the favourites for the win here. Sri Lanka, on the other hand, also depend heavily on their openers and would relish some sparks from their middle order. Ultimately, we expect a regulation victory for Team India here.
Fantasy XI: Abhishek Sharma, Kusal Mendis (wk), Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Dasun Shanaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Dushmantha Chameera
Venue: Dubai International Stadium, Dubai
Winners Prediction: India
