Pakistan Edge Sri Lanka A in Last-Ball Thriller to Reach Asia Cup Final

In a dramatic semi-final clash, Pakistan Shaheens successfully defended a modest total of 153 against Sri Lanka A, securing a five-run win and a spot in the Men's Asia Cup Rising Stars 2025 final. Sri Lanka A started strongly, reaching 74-2, but the Shaheens' wrist-spin duo, Sufyan Moqim and Player of the Match Saad Masood, turned the game on its head, taking a combined 6-30 across eight overs to leave their opponents reeling at 99-8.

The match was taken to the wire by a spectacular counter-attack from Milan Rathnayake (40), who joined the crease at 79-6 and smashed 25 runs off the 17th and 18th overs. However, with 15 runs required in the final over, Ubaid Shah held his nerve, crucially dismissing Rathnayake with a yorker on the third delivery to secure the hard-fought victory. Earlier, strong contributions from Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (39), Saad Masood (22), and a quick-fire 22 from Ahmed Daniyal helped Pakistan post a competitive total, despite stellar bowling from Sri Lanka's Pramod Madushan (4-29) and Traveen Mathew (3-22). The Shaheens will now meet Bangladesh A for the trophy.*