Sri Lanka won the ICC World Cup qualifier 2023 final after beating the Netherlands in the final on Sunday at Harare Sports Club. Sri Lanka has been nothing short of sensational throughout the tournament and put on another clinical effort on Sunday as well.
The Island nation remained unbeaten throughout the tournament and, thereby, made a statement. In the final, Sri Lanka didn’t make a great start as both Nissanka (23) and Samarawickrama (19) got out early. However, the new man Arachchinge combined with Kusal Mendis and led the team’s recovery.
The duo put on a 72-run partnership for the 7th wicket before Mendis departed on 43. Arachchinge played a stellar knock of 51 runs in 71 balls. Later, the likes of Asalanka (36), Hasaranga (29), and Theekshana (13) came up with handy contributions to guide the team to a decent total of 233 runs.
It was a combined bowling effort from the Netherlands. Four bowlers, namely Van Beek, Ryan Klein, Vikramjit Singh, and Saqib claimed two wickets each. As it turned out, it proved more than enough for Sri Lanka.
Theekshana-Madushanka Spin-Choke Netherlands Batters
They put on a sensational effort with the ball, bundling the opposition out for just 105 runs. Left-handed seamer, Madushanka picked three wickets out of the first five to leave the Netherlands reeling at 41 for 5.
Hasaranga and Theekshana turned spun a web around the opposition as they combined to pick six wickets between them. Max O’Dowd (33) looked the best batter for them but Theekshana knocked off his stumps before cleaning up the tail. Scott Edwards’ run-out didn’t help their cause either.
Theekshana ended up picking the most wickets in the team, returning with sensational figures of 4 for 31 in 6.3 overs. Madushanka claimed three wickets, while Hasaranga picked two.
Pathum Nissanka finished the tournament as the highest run-scorer for Sri Lanka, while Hasaranga picked the most wickets. He finished with 22 wickets in 7 games, while Theekshana has 21 in 8 matches.
ICC World Cup Qualifier 2023 Final Scorecard:
Brief Scores: Sri Lanka 233 in 47.5 overs (Arachchige 57; van Beek 2-40) beat Netherlands 105 in 23.3 overs (O’Dowd 33; Theekshana 4-31, Madushanka 3-18) by 128 runs
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