NISSANKA FIFTY

HELPS SL EDGE SLOPPY HK IN A THRILLER

- By CHAMPIKA FERNANDO IN DUBAI

Sri Lanka were made to work much harder than they would have liked before sealing a nervy four-wicket win over Hong Kong China in their second Asia Cup match at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium last night.

What was billed as a routine chase of 150 turned into a far more complicated affair as Hong Kong bowled with heart and discipline, and only a spate of dropped catches denied them the chance of pulling off something extraordinary. Six chances went down in all - four of them from the bat of Pathum Nissanka (two either side of his half-century) and two off Kusal Perera (on 4 and 5) - and those errors ultimately cost the Associate side dearly.

Earlier, Hong Kong put together a highly respectable 149 for 4 after being sent in. Zeeshan Ali's brisk 23 set the early tempo, and although wickets fell either side of the powerplay, the innings was held together by Nizakat Khan. He shared a 61-run stand with Anshuman Rath, who played fluently for 48 before holing out at deep mid-wicket.