Rohit Sharma-led Indian Cricket Team extended their winning run in the ongoing edition of the Asia Cup 2023 by defeating Dasun Shanaka’s Sri Lanka at R. Premadasa Stadium, on Tuesday in their second Super 4 match. Despite Men in Blue’s victory, it was the young Sri Lankan all-rounder Dunith Wellalage who was the real star and highlight of the rain-hit match.
The spinner spun a web that trapped the Indian top-order one by one. He dismissed Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, and Hardik Pandya to break the backbone upbeat Indian batting line-up. He also received help from the pitch as the ball kept on skidding low and did not provide enough bounce for batters to utilize.
Lankan Lions came into the match as clear underdogs but their performance with the ball held India at bay. They wrapped up the Indian innings inside 50 overs and restricted them to the mere score of 213.
However, the Lankan batters had no answer to the questions from the Indian lethal bowling line-up.
Even in adversity, Wellalage didn’t break and after putting on a star performance with the ball, he kept the fight going with the bat. The young all-rounder smashed an unbeaten knock of 42 runs off just 46 balls and kept the Lankan hopes up till the end.
Wellalage even received the Player of the Match despite his team losing the match. The youngster’s first
call to fame came in the year 2022 when he led the Sri Lanka side in the U-19 World Cup 2022. He grabbed 17 scalps in six matches with an astonishing average of 13.58. He was also the highest run-scorer for SL in that tournament with 264 runs at an average of 44. He later made his ODI debut in the same year against Australia and his Test debut against Pakistan in July 2022.
