WATCH: Gautam Gambhir poses with Sri Lankan flag after Dasun Shanaka-led side beat Pakistan in Asia Cup final

In the final of the Asia Cup T20 tournament, Sri Lanka were up against Pakistan at Dubai International Stadium on Sunday (September 11). The top-two sides of this year’s continental event played a closely-fought final which, in the end, resulted in Sri Lanka’s favour, as they won the decider by 23 runs to bag their sixth Asia Cup title.

Pakistani skipper Babar Azam won the toss in the summit clash and invited Sri Lanka to bat first. The Islanders had a forgetful start as they lost the wicket of opening batter Kusal Mendis in the first over itself. His opening partner, Pathum Nissanka's, stay at the crease was also short-lived and he too joined his teammate in the dugout soon. Sri Lanka had lost half of their team for 58 runs in 8.5 overs, but from there on, they recovered and, with the help of Bhanuka Rajapaksa’s 45-ball 71 and Wandidu Hasaranga’s 21-ball 36, they posted a total of 170 runs on the board for the loss of six wickets.

In reply to Sri Lanka’s 171-run target, Pakistan suffered a double blow in the fourth over when both skipper Babar Azam (5) and number three batter Fakhar Zaman (0) returned back to the hut in consecutive deliveries. The side could never recover from it and, in the end, got all out for 147 runs in 20 overs. It was a heartbreaking defeat for the Men in Green, who were tipped as favourites for the title after India’s exit from the tournament.

After Sri Lanka managed to get the better of Pakistan in the final of the Asia Cup 2022, former Indian opening batter Gautam Gambhir was seen posing for photographs with the Sri Lankan flag in his hands. The video of Gambhir posing for a photo with the flag in front of Sri Lankan fans has gone viral on the internet.

During his days at the highest level, Gambhir played many memorable knocks against Sri Lanka, and the most famous one of them all was his 97-run innings against the Sri Lankan team in the 2011 World Cup final. In that game, Gambhir came out to bat at number three and helped India bounce back from two early dismissals of Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar. He was unlucky to miss out on a century in that game but made sure that India bagged the World Cup after 28 years.