Men's T20 Asia Cup: Decoding the best bowling figures for Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka cricket team pacer Nuwan Thushara entered his name in the history books of the Men’s T20 Asia Cup. On September 18, Thursday, Thushara clocked 4/18 against Afghanistan in Match 11 at Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. The Group B clash saw a magical spell from the pacer as Sri lanka restricted Afghanistan to 169/8 before the Lankans chased it down to eliminate their opponents from the tournament.

As per ESPNcricinfo, Thushara has now posted the record of best bowling figures for Sri Lanka in Men’s Asia Cup T20Is. The 31-year-old pacer broke the record of former pace sensation Lasith Malinga (4/26). Malinga managed his 4 wickets in a match against UAE in Mirpur on February 25, 2016. He finished with figures of 4 for 26.

Meanwhile, Pramod Madushan is the only other Sri Lankan bowler with a four-fer in the T20 Asia Cup. He clocked 4/34 from his 4 overs against Pakistan in the 2022 edition of the tournament.

Thushara clocks 4/18 versus Afghanistan

Thushara opened the bowling for Sri Lanka and picked two wickets in his 2nd over. He dismissed Rahmanullah Gurbaz first before getting the wicket of Karim Janat. The former tried to force a big shot before being caught. Karim was then bowled.

Thushara also picked another wicket in his 3rd over which happened inside the powerplay. He got the scalp of Sediqullah Atal with a peach of a delivery. The first ball of the 17th over saw Thushara claim his 4th wicket.

Thushara now owns 35 wickets from 25 T20Is at 18.28. This was his 3rd four-wicket haul in T20Is. He also owns a fifer.