Asia Cup 2022: 3 records that were broken during Sri Lanka's emphatic win in the final against Pakistan

With a 23-run victory over Pakistan, the Sri Lankan team registered a memorable triumph as they lifted the Asia Cup 2022 title in Dubai on Sunday (September 11).

Overcoming various on- and off-field travails, Sri Lanka showed an extraordinary level of resurgence throughout the tournament. Following their humbling defeat in the opening game, the Dasun Shanaka-led side went on a five-match winning spree to get their hands on the silverware.

After being put in to bat first, Sri Lanka faced initial setbacks. They had just 58 runs on the board with half of their side back in the pavilion. However, with a top-quality knock of 71* from 45 by Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka powered their way to a score of 170 in their 20 overs.

Wanindu Hasaranga (36 off 21) too played a crucial cameo in the innings which shifted the momentum in Sri Lanka's favor.

Champions Of Asia 🇱🇰🌟

📸: ICC

#SLvPAK #AsiaCup #cricketsrilanka #cricketpakistan https://t.co/76BILnIL4U

Chasing 171, Pakistan were plagued by a regular fall of wickets as only Mohammad Rizwan played a substantial innings of 55. Though Rizwan did hold one end up, other Pakistani batters failed to come good when it mattered most.

Left-arm pacer Dilshan Madushanka took four wickets while Hasaranga inflicted three vital blows in a single over. As a result, Pakistan were restricted to 147 in their task.

Due to his superlative unbeaten 71, Rajapaksa was adjudged as the Player of the Match, while Hasaranga, who took nine wickets in the competition, was awarded the Player of the Tournament.

The high-octane finale saw several milestones being created and broken. For starters, the Asia Cup 2022 win has taken Sri Lanka's Asia Cup tally to six, just one behind India's record of seven titles.

On that note, let's take a look at three other records that were broken during Sri Lanka's emphatic win over Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2022 final.

#1 Bhanuka Rajapaksa's 71* is the highest individual score by a batsman at No. 4 or lower in a T20I final

Bhanuka Rajapaksa played a gem of an innings in the final against Pakistan. [Pic Credit: Getty Images]

Rajapaksa played a match-winning innings on the night of the final and proved to be a cornerstone for his side's success.

He overcame an early collapse by Sri Lanka and clobbered six boundaries and three maximums en route to his score of 71* off 45 balls. This is now the highest individual score in a T20I final game by a player batting at No. 4 or lower.

Bhanuka Rajapaksa won it for Sri Lanka against Pakistan in Asia Cup 2022 🔥🔥

#SLvPAK #AsiaCup #cricketsrilanka #cricketpakistan https://t.co/I7vtiBncI7

The previous highest score also belonged to a Sri Lankan, Kumar Sangakkara, and that too was against Pakistan, when he smashed 64* during the 2009 T20 World Cup final.

#2 Sri Lanka have now won the most matches in Asia Cup

The Lankan side now have most victories in Asia Cup's history.

With a thumping 23-run victory in the final, the Sri Lankan team registered their 40th win in the history of the Asia Cup. This is now the most by any nation in the tournament, surpassing India's record of 39.

While India have played 59 matches in the competition's history, it took 61 games for Sri Lanka to reach the landmark.

Sri Lanka are one shy of India 👀👀

#SLvPAK #AsiaCup #cricketsrilanka #cricketpakistan https://t.co/FxiWWhPsHC

However, the majority of these games were played in the ODI format, which has been used for all save the 2016 and this year's editions of the event.

Interestingly, Sri Lanka were also the team who won the inaugural game of the first-ever Asia Cup when they defeated Pakistan by five wickets in 1984.

#3 Sri Lanka are the first team to successfully defend a total in a men's World Cup or Asia Cup final since 2012

The team batting first has won a final in a major T20I or ODI tournament after a long time.

As many as 26 of the last 30 T20I games played in Dubai saw teams who bat second win the match. So when Sri Lanka lost the toss and were invited to bat first on Sunday, it required a valorous effort to outdo Pakistan.

That's exactly what they did when they put up a challenging total of 170 before bundling out their opposition for 147.

From 10 extras in the first over to a wicket off the last ball of the last over!🇱🇰🏆✨
#SLvPAK #asiacup2022 #PAKvsSL #AsiaCupFinal2022 #Hasaranga #Rajapaksa https://t.co/AoXzvMTnla

Interestingly, this is the first time in 10 years that a team has successfully defended their first innings score in either a men's World Cup (50 and 20-over formats) or an Asia Cup final.

The last time a nation managed to defend their first innings score in a World Cup or Asia Cup final was when the West Indies defeated Sri Lanka to the 2012 World T20 title in Colombo. The Caribbean side managed to win despite scoring just 137 from their 20 overs.