Sri Lanka crushed Bangladesh in the third-place match of the Asian Games Men’s Cricket competition at Nisshin in Japan to win the bronze medal. After being decided to bat first, Sri Lanka posted 165/9 in 20 overs. Sri Lanka made a poor start as their top four batters failed to make an impact. All four were dismissed for single-digit scores. Tharindu Rathnayake played a superb knock with wickets falling around him. Mahedi Hasan was the best bowler for Bangladesh, taking 2/19 in four overs, while Saif Hassan and Mustafizur Rahman also picked up two wickets each. In reply, Bangladesh also lost their first three wickets in just 2.1 overs with only four runs on the scoreboard. Their situation became even worse as the innings progressed. At the halfway mark, Bangladesh were struggling at 67/7. Nasum Ahmed offered some resistance, but Bangladesh fell short by a huge margin. They were eventually bowled out for 102 with 15 balls to spare. Wanuja Sahan (2/17 in 4 overs) was the most successful bowler, while Nuwan Thushara, Tharindu Rathnayake, and Vijayakanth Viyaskanth also took two wickets each. With this win, Sri Lanka secured the bronze medal in the Asian Games Men’s Cricket competition.

Sri Lanka Suffer Nightmare Powerplay

Sri Lanka started badly with the bat. Their top order again struggled after a similar collapse against India in the semi-final. Sineth Jayawardena failed to connect with a delivery from Mahedi Hasan in the third over. Lasith Croospulle then chipped another delivery to mid-off during the same over. Nuwanido Fernando soon became Aliss Al Islam's first T20I wicket. The wicket came after Fernando was caught behind for one. Replays, however, showed that he had missed the ball. Sri Lanka suffered another setback later in the same over. Sohan de Livera attempted to complete a second run but was run out. Sri Lanka found themselves in serious trouble at 21 for 4 after four overs. Their top four had managed only 27 runs across their two matches in the competition. Nuwanidu contributed 15 of those runs against India.

Ratnayake Changes the Game

Sahan Arachchige provided some stability from No. 5. He first built a 33-run partnership with Ashen Bandara. Ratnayake then transformed the innings. He opened his attack with a switch-hit six against Saif Hassan. He then targeted Mustafizur Rahman. Mustafizur struggled badly in his first over. Ratnayake and the extras helped Sri Lanka collect 25 runs from it. The over included seven wides, two no-balls, two fours and a six over midwicket. Mustafizur had conceded 23 runs in his final over against Pakistan in the semi-final. This time, he suffered his most expensive over in T20Is. Ratnayake continued his attack against Rishad Hossain. He hit a reverse-hit six in the next over as Bangladesh conceded 16 runs. Aliss had bowled economically until then. But Ratnayake attacked him too in the 16th over. He used another switch shot through point and helped Sri Lanka score 11 runs. Mustafizur continued to struggle at the other end. Ratnayake then launched another attack against Rishad in the 18th over. He hit the first ball for six to complete his half-century from only 26 balls. He followed it with two fours and another six through conventional leg-side sweeps. Parvez Hossain Emon then dropped Ratnayake at the end of the over. Sri Lanka finished strongly. They scored 64 runs during the final five overs.

Bangladesh Lose Three Early Wickets

Sri Lanka carried their batting momentum into their bowling innings. Nuwan Thushara put Saif Hassan under pressure during the opening over. He beat the batter's outside edge five times before finding the edge from the final delivery. Ratnayake then joined the attack with the new ball. Tanzid Hasan tried to hit his offbreak into the deep but failed to clear the fielder. Towhid Hridoy also fell while attempting a similar shot against Ratnayake's left-arm spin. Hridoy had been Bangladesh's most effective batter during the innings. In between those wickets, Thushara produced a yorker that dismissed Litton Das. Bangladesh lost three of their top batters for ducks.

Sri Lankan Spinners Complete the Job

Bangladesh briefly tried to rebuild. However, Sri Lanka's spinners soon ended their resistance. Vijayakanth Viyaskanth dismissed Emon for 22 after the batter edged behind. Replays again raised questions about whether the ball had touched the bat. Mahedi Hasan fell lbw on the next delivery. Wanuja Sahan then produced a sharp return catch to dismiss Rishad Hossain. He struck again soon after. His delivery went through Yasir Ali and added another wicket to Bangladesh's collapse. Nasum Ahmed provided some late resistance. He finished with 26 runs. However, captain Arachchige dismissed him in the 18th over. Bangladesh were eventually bowled out for 102 in 17.3 overs.