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15th Asia Cup begins tomorrow in UAE

26 Aug 2022

  • Sri Lanka will play the opener against Afghanistan tomorrow (27) in Dubai 
  • Defending champions India determined to lift third consecutive title
  • Fourth-time participants Hong Kong secure the final spot after winning the qualifier 
By Ranjika Perera    The biggest cricketing prize in the Asian continent is up for grabs as the much-anticipated Asia Cup returns after a four-year hiatus. Sri Lanka was tipped to host one of the biggest tournaments in international cricket, but due to the volatile situation in the country, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) decided to move it to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). However, Sri Lanka will still be considered the host nation of the tournament.  The history of the Asia Cup traces back to 1984 when India, under the captaincy of Sunil Gavaskar, won the inaugural edition held in the UAE. The series was played in a round-robin format with Pakistan and Sri Lanka.  The tournament has since had 14 editions – the last of them being played in 2018 in the UAE. India beat Bangladesh by three wickets in the final, thus successfully defending the title they won by beating the same opponents back in 2016.  India is the most successful side in the tournament’s history with seven titles (1984, 1988, 1990-91, 1995, 2010, 2016, and 2018). Sri Lanka is second on the list with five titles, followed by Pakistan who has won the title twice. Incidentally, Sri Lanka is the only team to feature in all 14 editions. Bangladesh has hosted the Asia Cup the most number of times (five). UAE will play host for the fourth time in the 2022 edition. Meanwhile, India has only hosted the tournament once in 1990-91 when it clinched its third title after beating Sri Lanka.   Teams and groups for Asia Cup 2022 Six teams will feature in the Asia Cup 2022 tournament. India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan earned automatic qualification while Singapore, UAE, Kuwait, and Hong Kong fought for the remaining place in the qualifier held in Oman.  Hong Kong emerged on top of four teams as they beat UAE by eight wickets in the final game of the qualifier. They will be placed alongside India and Pakistan in Group A. Group B comprises Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan.   India and Bangladesh have featured in the last two finals It is important to note that India and Bangladesh have been finalists in the last two tournaments in 2016 and 2018. In 2016, it was played in the T20 format but the match was reduced to 15 overs per side. Bangladesh batted first and managed to score 120 for five. India comfortably reached the target with eight wickets in hand to seal their sixth title. In 2018, both sides met again in Dubai. Bangladesh batted first and posted 222 in 48.3 overs courtesy of a century from Litton Das. India got over the line off the final delivery of the innings to secure their seventh title.   Sri Lanka favourites to beat Afghanistan in the opener Sri Lanka will fancy their chances against Afghanistan in the tournament opener tomorrow (27). The last time they met, Sri Lanka scrapped through to a 34-run win at the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup in the UK. Lasith Malinga was the hero in that game with the ball after Kusal Janith Perera scored a quick-fire knock with the bat.  However, the two teams look completely different from what they were three years back. Sri Lanka have found their mojo back with a few fine performances in white ball cricket recently. But, Afghanistan will not stand down without a fight.    Squads  Sri Lanka: Dasun Shanaka (Captain), Dhanushaka Gunathilaka, Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Charith Asalanka, Banuka Rajapaksa, Ashen Bandara, Asitha Fernando, Dhananjaya de Silva, Wanidu Hasaranga, Mahesh Theekshana, Jeffery Vandersay, Praveen Jayawickrema, Chamika Karunaratne, Dilshan Madushanka, Matheesha Pathirana, and Promod Madushan  Standbys: Dinesh Chandimal, Nuwanidu Fernando, and Nuwan Thushara    India: Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, and Avesh Khan.  Standbys: Axar Patel, Deepak Chahar, and Shreyas Iyer   Pakistan: Babar Azam (Captain), Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jnr., Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Qadir, and Mohammad Hasnain   Bangladesh: Shakib Al Hasan (Captain), Anamul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Afif Hossain, Mosaddek Hossain, Mahmudullah, Mahedi Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Hasan Mahmud, Mustafizur Rahman, Nasum Ahmed, Sabbir Rahman, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Ebadot Hossain, Parvez Hossain Emon, Taskin Ahmed, and Mohammad Naim   Afghanistan: Mohammad Nabi (Captain), Najibullah Zadran, Afsar Zazai, Azmatullah Omarzai, Farid Ahmad Malik, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Hazratullah Zazai, Ibrahim Zadran, Karim Janat, Mujib ur Rahman, Najibullah Zadran, Naveen ul Haq, Noor Ahmad, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rashid Khan, and Samiullah Shinwari.  Standbys: Nijat Masoud, Qais Ahmad, and Sharafuddin Ashraf   Hong Kong: Yasim Murtaza, Nizakat Khan (Captain), Babar Hayat, Kinchit Shah, Aizaz Khan, Scott McKechnie, Zeeshan Ali, Haroon Arshad, Ehsan Khan, Mohammad Ghazanfar, Ayush Shukla, Wajid Shah, Aftab Hussain, Dhananjay Rao, Mohammad Waheed, Ahan Trivedi, and Ateeq Iqbal

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Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Automobile, Mother and Baby Products, Clothing, and Fashion. Additionally, Kapruka offers unique online services like Money Remittance, Astrology, Medicine Delivery, and access to over 700 Top Brands. Also If you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.Send love straight to their heart this Valentine's with our thoughtful gifts!


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