5 Instances when a low score was successfully defended in the ODI Asia Cup

The modern day ODI game is all about batters dominating the bowlers. The short boundaries, thicker bats, flat pitches, two new balls, powerplays are some of the rules that have completely tilted the game in the batter's favour. Even a 300-plus total is not considered a safe score nowadays.

Perhaps that is what makes Asia Cup special. One of the game's biggest ODI competitions, the Asia Cup is also one of the most competitive ones. That is the reason why we have witnessed bowlers making their mark in the continental tournament every now and then.

In the 15 editions of the tournament so far, one has seen numerous matches where bowlers helped their team defend a total that is usually considered indefensible. Through this article, we are taking a look at such games where teams managed to defend low scores in the Asia Cup.

5 Instances when a low score was successfully defended in the ODI Asia Cup:

5. 228/9 by Sri Lanka vs India in Colombo (RPS) in 2004

Sri Lanka defended a very low total of 228 against a star-studded Indian team in the final of the 2004 Asia Cup. India and Sri Lanka were up against each other in the summit clash in Colombo. Sri Lanka won the toss and decided to bat first. The hosts made a poor start with the bat and lost two wickets for 31 runs.

However, they quickly recovered thanks to fifties from Marvan Atapattu (65) and Kumar Sangakkara (53). But once Virender Sehwag dismissed Sangakkara to end the 116-run partnership, Sri Lanka lost their way in the innings and finished on 228/9 in 50 overs. For India, Sachin Tendulkar was the pick of the bowlers, taking two for 40.

In reply, India kept losing wickets at regular intervals. The likes of Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid were back in the hut even before the team could score 100 runs. Tendulkar waged a lone battle at one end and scored 74 but did not get any support from the other end. India eventually finished on 203/9.