Sri Lanka has won the Hong Kong Sixes 2024 title. They defeated Pakistan by three wickets in the final of the tournament.
Sri Lanka won the toss and invited Pakistan to bat first. Batting first, Pakistan got bundled out for just 72 runs. Wicket-keeper batter Muhammad Akhlaq scored 48 runs in 20 deliveries. He struck 3 sixes and 5 fours. All the other batters failed to get going.
Asif Ali was dismissed on the second ball of the first over and Hussain Talat was also dismissed in the same over. Dhanjaya Lakshan picked up both their wickets. Tharindu Rathnayake also picked up 2 wickets. Nimesh Vimukthi and Lihuru Madhusanka
Chasing 73 runs, Sandun Weerakkody scored 34 runs (4 sixes and a four) and helped Sri Lanka off to a good start. Skipper Lihuru Madhusanka scored 19 runs. Sri Lanka lost two quick wickets but Tharindu Rathnayake sealed the deal with a couple of sixes and a four. Hussain Talat and Faheem Ashraf picked up one wicket each for Pakistan.
Sri Lanka remained unbeaten in Hong Kong Sixes
The Sri Lankan side was the only unbeaten side in the Hong Kong Sixes 2024. They defeated Oman by 6 wickets in their first game and Bangladesh by 18 runs in their second match.
Sri Lanka then defeated Nepal by 40 runs in the third quarter-final of the Hong Kong International Sixers 2024. In the second semi-final, they defeated Bangladesh by 3 wickets. It was the second time Sri Lanka outplayed Bangladesh.
Tharindu Rathnayake was the player of the tournament as he ended up with 8 wickets; the highest in the tournament. Oman’s Vinayak Shukla ended up as the highest run-scorer of the tournament. He scored 275 runs in 6 innings. He hit 32 sixes; the most by any batter in the tournament.
India had a forgettable tournament as they failed to even one game and were knocked out after the group stage. They even lost to Oman. Bharat Chipli (156 runs) and Robin Uthappa (145 runs) were the only performers with the bat for India. Stuart Binny was the highest wicket-taker for India with 4 wickets.
