India is set to lock horns with defending champions Sri Lanka today in the Asia Cup 2023 final at the R Premadasa Stadium in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo.
India sailed into the finals after knocking out Sri Lanka by 41 runs on September 12 in the Super Four category. "It was a good game," Indian captain and star skipper Rohit Sharma had said later in an interaction with the media, commenting on the team's win.
With no forecasts of rain as of now, the Asia Cup 2023 final is set to be an electrifying match, with all eyes set on the clash between the two teams, which is also being seen as a performance test for both ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup (ODI) 2023.
Run-up to ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 (ODI)
The 2023 edition of the Asia Cup has been affected more than often due to the unfavourable weather conditions in Sri Lanka, which suspended a number of games of the tournament. The Indo-Pak clash in the tournament's Super Four category had to be called off at 24.1 overs and shifted to a reserve day as rains interrupted the game.
Rohit Sharma-led Team India is expected to aggressively fire on all guns today to lift the trophy - India last clinched the Asia Cup title in 2018. Speculations are rife about whether or not India will finally be able to bat smart and break its five-year drought ahead of the Cricket World Cup 2023, which kicks off on October 5 in Gujarat's Ahmedabad.
Winning the Asia Cup trophy this year would act as a huge confidence booster for the Indian team, which is eyeing to break its decade-long ICC World Cup drought, given its faltering performances in multi-nation tournaments for the past few years. Team mismanagement, player fatigue from tight cricketing schedules, and unresolved internal team issues have been among some of the key reasons for the declining performance of the Indian team in international tournaments.
India vs. Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, however, is having to deal with player injuries amid the Asia Cup tournament and ahead of the ICC World Cup. Maheesh Theekshana will not be playing in the final owing to a hamstring injury, and will likely be replaced by leg-spinner Dushan Hemantha.
Meanwhile, India has been solidly cushioned from this dampener of player injuries. In fact, after being out for injuries, two of India's strongest players - KL Rahul and Jasprit Bumrah - made noteworthy comebacks in the tournament, winning matches for the team.
In a last-minute development, India's all-rounder Washington Sundar stepped in as a replacement for the injured Axar Patel.
"Axar Patel has been ruled out of the Asia Cup final against Sri Lanka due to a left quadriceps strain sustained during India's Super Four match against Bangladesh," the BCCI had stated on September 16.
India, nevertheless, will still be facing a nail-biting situation with the pressure of clinching the trophy, as it hopes wholeheartedly to reclaim its 2011 position in the ICC World Cup on home turf.
How's the pitch?
The R Premadasa Stadium is popularly hailed for its batter-friendly wickets. With the progress of the match, it is also known to provide adequate support to spinners. Teams batting first enjoy an edge over teams chasing targets on this pitch, a trend that continued in the Asia Cup 2023 as well. Three matches in the tournament saw teams batting first being victorious.
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