KEY POPINTS
- Sri Lanka edge Afghanistan in last-over thriller chasing 236.
- Bangladesh dominates Nepal in seven-wicket rout.
- Sri Lanka, Bangladesh advance, Afghanistan and Nepal eliminated.
DUBAI: Defending champions Bangladesh and former champions Sri Lanka stormed into the semi-finals of the ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup 2025 on Monday, sending Afghanistan and Nepal crashing out of the tournament.
In a nerve-wracking low-scoring thriller at the ICC Academy, Sri Lanka secured a hard-earned two-wicket victory over Afghanistan.
Chasing a modest 236, Sri Lankan batters stumbled but were steered home by Chamika Heenatigala’s unbeaten 51, completing the chase with just four balls to spare.
Earlier, Sethmika Seneviratne and Dulnith Sigera took three wickets each to bowl Afghanistan out for 235.
At The Sevens Stadium, Bangladesh delivered a commanding performance to thrash Nepal by seven wickets. Their bowlers, led by Md Sobuj (3 wickets), dismantled Nepal for a paltry 130 in 31.1 overs.
Opener Zawad Abrar then made light work of the chase, smashing an unbeaten 70 off 68 balls to seal the win with 151 balls remaining.
With these results, Sri Lanka tops Group B with four points and a superior net run rate, followed by Bangladesh.
The two semi-finalists will face each other on Wednesday in a match to decide the group winner, while Afghanistan and Nepal will play for pride.
