Watch: Sri Lanka Fan's Celebration After Team's Last-Ball Win Over Pakistan Is Viral
Sri Lanka fans were jubilant as their team qualified for the Asia Cup final, beating Pakistan in a last-ball thriller.
If cricket is one of the most popular games in the world, it's fans who made that possible. Fans don't just boost the morale of the team but also act as 12th players for their team, giving their teams the required support to make the victory possible. But, as one set of fans rejoice in their team's win, the other sinks. As Sri Lanka emerged triumphant against Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 match, a fan's celebration went viral on social media.
The final moments of the Asia Cup match on Thursday were quite tense, with Sri Lanka needing 6 runs from 2 balls to qualify for the final. A fan, holding his nerves, went berserk as he saw Charith Asalanka hit the winning runs for his team. The celebration that followed next was out of this world. Here's the video:
Even when they are 1000kms away from home still got the same passion pic.twitter.com/vKsxX9EYPA
— Shihan Wijesinghe (@Shihan_88) September 15, 2023
Asalanka, who hit the winning runs for Sri Lanka, termed his unbeaten 49 as the second-best knock of his career.
"I just thought how can I get two to hit in the gap and run hard because it's a big field. I told Matheesha to run very hard and we'll try to get two runs. Two things was in my mind. I thought he's going to bowl a bouncer, otherwise a yorker. He tried a slower ball and it worked for my side. I am very excited, still excited about that. Kusal and Sadeera played really well, they laid the platform.
"I planned to finish the game, that's the role in my side. Definitely yes (best ODI knock), I think I can rank this innings second place in my book," he said.
Sri Lanka have already put in some noteworthy performances in the Asia Cup. Though they lost the previous match against India, the effort that the co-hosts of the tournament had put in earned them plenty of applause from the cricketing spectrum.
In the final on Sunday, the Lankans would look to do a little better and lift the Asia Cup title for the second consecutive year.
Pakistan Cricket Team
Sri Lanka Cricket Team