Sri Lanka captain Charith Asalanka firmly stated that he isn't worried about the outcome of the toss ahead of their highly-important clash against Pakistan in Asia Cup 2025. He pointed out that even though the team batting second holds an advantage at the Sheikh Zayed stadium, they cannot rely solely on the toss.
“In the first round, Sri Lanka successfully chased down targets in all three matches. In the Super 4s, however, we had to bat first. I don’t think the toss will have a major impact. Statistics suggest that the team batting second often has an advantage at Dubai Stadium, but we cannot rely on the toss," Asalanka said at the pre-match press-conference.
“As professionals, we must manage these situations. We batted well, and at one point we thought we could reach around 180–185, but we could have done slightly better in the final two hours. Unfortunately, it simply wasn’t our day,” he added.
Asalanka further highlighted the importance of Sri Lanka's match against Pakistan, and also backed the team to bounce back from their defeat to Bangladesh in their previous match of the tournament. Though the Lankan Lions didn't begin their Super 4 campaign on a high, the captain feels that the team is capable of reaching the tournament's final.
“Yes, we are fully aware that this is a must-win game for us. It’s an extremely important Super 4 fixture, especially after our heavy defeat against Bangladesh in the previous match. But we have to put that behind us and focus on the matches ahead. If we can win the next two games, reaching the final is entirely possible,” Asalanka stated.
Bangladesh snapped Sri Lanka's winning streak
Sri Lanka came into the Super 4 stage after winning all of their three matches in the group stage. So, they were the favourites to defeat Bangladesh and keep their winning streak in-tact. However, it was the Litton Das-led side that chased down the 169-run target and claimed victory in the 'Naagin' derby. Asalanka & Co. will definitely be desperate to bounce back from that defeat.
Must-win match for both Sri Lanka and Pakistan
Notably, both Sri Lanka and Pakistan lost their previous matches of the tournament. The latter recorded a 6-wicket defeat to India to start their Super 4 campaign on a disappointing note. The two teams will be taking on each other on September 23 in what will be a must-win match for both of them.