Pakistan or Sri Lanka - Who will qualify for Asia Cup 2023 final if today’s Super 4 match is washed out?
Pakistan and Sri Lanka are caught in a delicate situation with their final Super Four contest being a virtual knockout contest for a place in the Asia Cup 2023 final. Both teams have two points after playing as many matches and are only separated on the points table by net run rate.
Pakistan and Sri Lanka both secured a win over Bangladesh but suffered defeats against India. The Men in Green won over Bangladesh by seven wickets in Lahore and lost to India by a huge margin of 228 runs.
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, defeated Bangladesh by a slender margin of 21 runs before losing to the Men in Blue by 41 runs. Such contrasting nature of results has led to a vast difference between the net run-rate of these two sides.
As things stand in the Asia Cup 2023 Super Four stage points table, Pakistan are placed third with a net run-rate of -1.892. Sri Lanka are placed second with a much improved net run rate of -0.200 when compared to their rivals.
Rain is presently playing a major threat to proceedings at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, just as the forecast predicted it would. The ground is currently covered, with even the toss yet to be conducted between the captains. The players did step out for a while for their warm-ups but had to step back in once the rain made its appearance again.
The signs are not looking good, with dark clouds currently hovering and the rainfall getting heavier as well.
It is to be noted that there is no reserve day in place for the contest. Both teams will be awarded a point each if no play is possible before the cutoff time or either side do not play at least a minimum of 20 overs to enforce DLS.
In that scenario, both teams will end up with three points each. Since there will be no change to their net run rate due to the washed out encounter, Sri Lanka will advance into the 2023 Asia Cup final.
Asia Cup 2023 final will be played on September 17
Team India have already qualified for the final of the continental tournament. Thus, their upcoming Super Four game against Bangladesh does not hold much meaning.
The final will be played on Sunday, September 17, at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo and has a reserve day in place.
Who will qualify for the 2023 Asia Cup final between Pakistan and Sri Lanka? Let us know what you think.