Asia Cup 2025: India Edge Sri Lanka in Super Over Thriller Despite Nissanka’s Century
<p><strong>Dubai, September 26, 2025</strong> – India held their nerve in a nail-biting contest at the <strong>Asia Cup Super Fours</strong>, defeating Sri Lanka in a dramatic <strong>Super Over</strong> despite a stunning century from opener <strong>Pathum Nissanka</strong>.</p><p>In a high-scoring game at the <strong>Dubai International Cricket Stadium</strong>, both teams posted identical totals of <strong>202 runs</strong>, forcing a Super Over finish. India eventually prevailed to remain unbeaten in the tournament.</p><h3>India Sets a Stiff Target</h3><p>Opting to bat first, India piled up <strong>202/5 in 20 overs</strong>, riding on fluent knocks from <strong>Abhishek Sharma (61 off 37)</strong> and *<i>Tilak Varma (49</i> off 28)**.</p><p>Abhishek, continuing his superb run, smashed his <strong>third consecutive half-century</strong> of the tournament with clean hitting in the powerplay. Despite losing <strong>Shubman Gill early</strong>, and skipper <strong>Suryakumar Yadav</strong> cheaply, India recovered through a steady stand between Abhishek and <strong>Sanju Samson</strong>.</p><p>Tilak Varma anchored the latter half of the innings with a calm unbeaten knock, while <strong>Axar Patel’s cameo of 21 off 15</strong>, including a last-ball six, pushed India past the 200-run mark.</p><h3>Nissanka’s Counterattack</h3><p>Chasing 203, Sri Lanka began with fireworks. <strong>Pathum Nissanka</strong> and <strong>Kusal Perera</strong> stitched together a blazing <strong>127-run stand</strong> that left India’s bowlers rattled. The pair reached <strong>72 in the Powerplay</strong>, with Nissanka timing the ball sweetly and Perera hammering the spinners.</p><p>India finally broke through in the <strong>13th over</strong> when <strong>Varun Chakaravarthy</strong> outfoxed Perera for 58. The dismissal briefly slowed Sri Lanka’s charge as <strong>Kuldeep Yadav</strong> and <strong>Arshdeep Singh</strong> picked up two more quick wickets, sending Asalanka and Kamindu Mendis back.</p><p>But Nissanka continued to anchor the chase. The stylish right-hander reached his <strong>first T20I century</strong>, thrilling the crowd with his fluent strokeplay.</p><h3>Final-Over Drama</h3><p>With Sri Lanka needing <strong>23 off the last 12 balls</strong>, the game tilted back and forth. Harshit Rana struck gold by dismissing Nissanka for 107 off the first ball of the final over, leaving Sri Lanka needing 12 from 6 deliveries.</p><p>Dasun Shanaka and his partners scrambled hard, eventually tying the scores at <strong>202</strong>, forcing the contest into a Super Over.</p><h3>Arshdeep Singh Turns the Tide</h3><p>Sri Lanka sent in <strong>Perera and Shanaka</strong> for the Super Over, but India’s <strong>Arshdeep Singh</strong> produced a dream spell. He struck off the very first ball, dismissing Perera, and removed Shanaka with his final delivery, conceding just <strong>two runs</strong> in between.</p><p>Chasing a mere <strong>3 runs</strong>, skipper <strong>Suryakumar Yadav</strong> and <strong>Shubman Gill</strong> needed only one ball. Yadav flicked the first delivery into the outfield, running three comfortably to seal India’s win.</p><h3>Key Performances</h3><p><strong>Pathum Nissanka (107 off 62)</strong> – Sri Lanka’s star performer with a maiden T20I century.</p><p><strong>Abhishek Sharma (61 off 37)</strong> – Anchored India’s innings with yet another half-century.</p><p><strong>Arshdeep Singh (2 wickets in Super Over)</strong> – Delivered under extreme pressure to hand India victory.</p><p><i>Tilak Varma (49 off 28)</i>* – Provided composure in India’s middle order.</p><h3>Dead Rubber, But High on Drama</h3><p>Although the match was effectively a <strong>dead rubber</strong>, with India already having qualified for the <strong>Asia Cup 2025 final</strong>, the contest produced one of the most thrilling finishes of the tournament.</p><p>Sri Lanka will take pride in their batting effort, especially Nissanka’s knock, but will rue their inability to close out the game. For India, the win reinforced their tag as the <strong>No. 1-ranked T20I side</strong>, heading into the much-anticipated final clash against arch-rivals Pakistan.</p><h3>Brief Scores:</h3><p><strong>India 202/5 (20 overs):</strong> Abhishek Sharma 61, Tilak Varma 49*; Theekshana 1-36, Asalanka 1-18<br><strong>Sri Lanka 202/5 (20 overs):</strong> Pathum Nissanka 107, Kusal Perera 58; Kuldeep Yadav 1-31, Varun Chakaravarthy 1-31<br><strong>Super Over:</strong> Sri Lanka 2/2 (Arshdeep 2-2) lost to India 3/0 (Suryakumar Yadav 3*).</p>