Abu Dhabi, September 23, 2025: All-rounder Hussain Talat starred with both ball and bat as Pakistan secured a hard-fought five-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in the ACC Men’s T20 Asia Cup 2025 Super Four clash at the Zayed Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.
Chasing 134 on a challenging surface, Pakistan crossed the finish line with 12 balls to spare, thanks to an unbeaten 58-run stand between Talat and Mohammad Nawaz.
Openers Sahibzada Farhan (24 off 15) and Fakhar Zaman (17 off 19) gave Pakistan a brisk start with 45 runs in the powerplay, but their dismissals in quick succession to Maheesh Theekshana put pressure back on the chase. Wanindu Hasaranga compounded matters by removing Saim Ayub and skipper Salman Ali Agha cheaply, leaving Pakistan at 57/4 in the ninth over.
Mohammad Haris and Talat attempted to rebuild, but Dushmantha Chameera struck to dismiss Haris for 11, reducing the Green Shirts to 80/5 in the 12th over. From there, Nawaz and Talat displayed composure, rotating the strike and punishing loose deliveries. Nawaz top-scored with an unbeaten 38 off 24 balls (3 fours, 3 sixes), while Talat made 32 not out from 30 deliveries (4 fours).
Earlier, Sri Lanka posted 133/8 in their allotted 20 overs, anchored by a fighting half-century from Kamindu Mendis. Shaheen Shah Afridi gave Pakistan a flying start, dismissing both openers — Kusal Mendis (0) and Pathum Nissanka (8) — inside the first three overs.
Despite a brief recovery, Sri Lanka stumbled again when Talat, introduced in the eighth over, struck twice in successive deliveries to remove skipper Charith Asalanka and Dasun Shanaka, leaving the defending champions reeling at 58/5.
Kamindu resisted with a gritty 50 off 44 balls, including three fours and two sixes, but lacked support at the other end. He eventually fell to Shaheen in the penultimate over.
Shaheen finished with 3/28, while Talat (2/19) and Haris Rauf (2/26) backed him up effectively. Abrar Ahmed chipped in with one wicket. For Sri Lanka, Theekshana (2/27) and Hasaranga (2/21) were the pick of the bowlers.
With this win, Pakistan bolstered their chances of reaching the Asia Cup final, while Sri Lanka were left needing results to go their way in the remaining fixtures.
