In an exhilarating final group stage match, Sri Lanka clinched their place in the Super 4s of the Asia Cup 2025 by defeating Afghanistan.
This victory, achieved at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, ensures that Sri Lanka will now compete alongside India and Pakistan in the next round. For Afghanistan, this loss marks the conclusion of their tournament journey.
The match was crucial for Afghanistan, who needed to triumph over Sri Lanka to maintain their qualification hopes. A win would have leveled their standing with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, necessitating a tiebreaker based on net run rate. However, despite a commendable effort, the Afghan team could not surpass the steady performance of the Sri Lankan squad.
Sri Lanka’s victory was especially important as it confirmed their advancement alongside Bangladesh from Group B. Entering the match, Sri Lanka held a favorable position with a positive net run rate, meaning that even a close loss would have sufficed for their progression. Conversely, Afghanistan needed to secure a win to surpass Bangladesh, whose prospects were uncertain following a significant loss to Afghanistan earlier in the group stage.
With the group stage for Group B now concluded, the Super 4s lineup is officially established. Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have qualified from Group B and will join India and Pakistan, who have already advanced from Group A. The Super 4s will adopt a round-robin format, with each of the four teams facing off against one another once. The top two teams from this stage will then move on to the final on September 28 in Dubai.