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Cricket World Player of the Week - Wanindu Hasaranga

©CWM

Not many gave Sri Lanka a chance before the beginning of the Asia Cup 2022 but the island nation dished out a true team performance to take the trophy home.

Wanindu Hasaranga ended up as the Player of the Series for Sri Lanka and was one of the most crucial players in the final as well alongside Bhanuka Rajapaksa.

With the team in trouble at 58 for 5 within the first half of the innings after being put into bat first on the night of the big final, Rajapaksa who scored a sublime 71 got the support of Wanindu Hasaranga.

Hasaranga took the pressure away from his batting partner as the spin bowling all-rounder smoked 36 off just 21 deliveries at a strike rate of 171 and played a major role in taking Sri Lanka to 170, which ultimately proved too much for Pakistan.

Hasaranga then came back to deliver four brilliant overs, picking up the wickets of all three of Mohammad Rizwan, Asif Ali and Khushdil Shah in the 17th over to all but crush Pakistan's hope of winning the Asia Cup.

The star Sri Lanka finished as the second-highest wicket-taker in the competition with 9 scalps from 6 matches behind India's Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Hasaranga maintained an average of 18.89 throughout the competition and gave away just 170 runs from the 23 overs he bowled.

Had it not been for his efforts, Sri Lanka wouldn't possibly have been able to lay their hands on the Asia Cup 2022 trophy.