Asia Cup final or 2023 World Cup - which Indian bowling effort vs Sri Lanka was better?
It was a case of deja vu for the Sri Lankan batters as Indian pacers wreaked havoc once again, this time during their 2023 World Cup encounter at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday, November 2.
Sri Lanka were bowled out for just 55 while chasing a massive target of 358, and handed India their biggest win in World Cups in terms of runs. The Men in Blue had skittled the Lankans for just 50 in the Asia Cup 2023 final in September earlier this year. That has naturally led the cricketing fraternity to draw parallels between the two bowling performances.
On that note, let's take a look at which bowling performance from India was more impressive in the context of the two games:
Stage of the tournament
India were brilliant at Wankhede and blew Sri Lanka away with their bowling performance. However, the performance in Asia Cup 2023 came in the final and not in the league stage. The hosts didn't exactly have the kind of pressure in Mumbai that they could have possibly experienced in Colombo.
The knockout performances have been an area of concern for the Men in Blue over the past few years. To see bowlers like Mohammed Siraj step up in the final with an incredible six-wicket haul and help his team clinch the Asia Cup title arguably gives it an edge over the Wankhede performance.
Conditions were more helpful in Colombo
While the performance in Colombo came in the final, one can argue that the conditions then were ideal for the pace bowlers to wreak havoc. With overcast weather and a covered pitch, the bowlers extracted swing and seam movement and troubled the Sri Lankan batters.
The Wankhede Stadium does offer the pacers a bit of assistance under lights. However, on a pitch where the Men in Blue scored more than 350 runs, it was expected that Sri Lanka would give a better fight.
The relentless attack from Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, and Jasprit Bumrah gave an edge to this performance over the one in the final.
India didn't have cushion of runs in Colombo
When a team posts a target of 358, the bowlers do come with some renewed energy and a spring in their stride. India didn't exactly have this situation in the Asia Cup final as they lost the toss and had to bowl first.
The two teams had already played a pretty close game in the Super Fours stage and chasing could have been difficult for India in Sri Lanka's den. However, the way the pacers blew the hosts away and almost sealed the game in the first half-hour showed how impressive this particular performance was.
Instead of Shami, the Men in Blue had Hardik Pandya as their first-change bowler and arguably that difference in quality also made the outing in Colombo a bit more pleasing. Not to forget the Sri Lankan batting line-up wasn't crippled with injuries and was almost at full strength.