Sri Lanka beat Pakistan to reach Asian Games final — Dawn
In Nissin, Japan, Sri Lanka's women's cricket team defeated Pakistan by eight wickets in the Asian Games semi-final. Sri Lanka successfully chased a target of 178 runs, scoring 178 for two wickets with 13 balls remaining.
Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu remained unbeaten on 83 runs from 50 balls. She hit seven boundaries and six sixes, while Harshitha Samarawickrama finished the match unbeaten on 17 runs. According to Dawn, in the eighth over Athapaththu hit a sequence of six, four, six and four against Mominah Riasat.
Sri Lanka's chase
Sri Lanka began the chase actively and had 19 runs without loss after two overs. Imesha Dulaney was dismissed in the fifth over after scoring 27 runs from 21 balls. After that, Athapaththu and Hasini Perera increased the pace of the game.
Perera scored 42 runs from 26 balls, including three boundaries and three sixes, before she was caught in the field in the 14th over. At that point, Sri Lanka needed 47 runs from 36 balls. Aliya Riaz also dropped a catch off Athapaththu when she was on 79 runs.
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Pakistan's innings
Earlier, Pakistan finished their innings with 177 runs for four wickets. Ayesha Zafar was the team's top scorer with 71 runs from 40 balls, nine boundaries and two sixes. Shawaal Zulfiqar scored 54 runs from 50 balls, and together with Zafar they put on a partnership of 115 runs.
Fatima Sana added 20 runs from 12 balls and remained unbeaten, while Eyman Fatima hit a boundary off the final ball of the innings. For Sri Lanka, Sugandika Kumari, Chamari Athapaththu and Kavya Kavindi took one wicket each. Kumari was the most economical bowler, conceding 31 runs in four overs.
In the final, Sri Lanka will play the winner of the second semi-final between India and Bangladesh. Pakistan will face the loser of that semi-final in the bronze-medal match.
