Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by two wickets yesterday (September 14) in a final-ball thriller which booked their place in the Asia Cup final. However, their target was reduced by a single run before they began the chase, ensuring the two scored off the final ball of the match was enough to win the game. Here’s why.
In a chaotic two-over final that started with Sri Lanka needing 12 balls, Shaheen Shah Afridi turned the match around by taking two wickets in two balls. A chaotic runout in the next period reduced the equation to six out of the final two. Charith Asaranka scored his four and two and in his 42 overs (the innings was reduced due to rain) he reached 252-8, the same total as Pakistan achieved in the innings. I did.
Rain delayed the start of the match earlier in the day and the match was reduced to 45 overs per side. At the end of match 27, Pakistan had reached a score of 128-4. Only four balls were made in the 28th over before the rain returned. Significantly, Mohammad Nawaz lost his wicket on his fourth ball, meaning Pakistan went into the rain delay at his 130 for five.
A short break further reduced the game to 42 overs per side. Pakistan, led by Mohammad Rizwan’s unbeaten 86 off 73 balls, scored 102 runs in the final 10 overs and finished with 252 wins and 7 losses. However, due to the break midway through the innings, the DLS methodology ruled that he should deduct one run from Sri Lanka’s target.
The relevant part of the DLS system affected by this decision is the number of wickets and balls that Pakistan had when the innings was interrupted. This system is based on the premise that the more resources a team uses before an inning is cut, the greater the opponent’s benefit from the cut. A team that is 200-7 after 35 overs usually scores lower in the last 15 than a team that is 200-1. If no adjustment for lost wickets were made, the chasing team would have fewer overs to achieve a higher total than the team batting first was likely to achieve. Therefore, the reduction in the number of runs required is made according to the batting resources lost by the team before the over is reduced.
Pakistan lost their fifth wicket with the ball before play was suspended due to rain. Therefore, at the end of the innings, DLS reduced the total by one run to compensate for the loss of additional batting resources before the rain delay. Had Nawaz gone into the rainy postponement undefeated, his goals probably wouldn’t have been reduced or even increased.
Sri Lanka took advantage of the cut to reach their 11th Asian Cup final. Had the match played out the same way, with the Super Over deciding which team will face India in Sunday’s final, this extra shot at goal would have resulted in Sri Lanka leveling the score for Pakistan.
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