INCHEON: Test nation Sri Lanka washed away Afghanistan’s dream of winning their first ever Asian Games gold medal as they overcame a batting slump to win the cricket final by 68 runs on Friday.
Bowled out for 133, the Sri Lankans hit back to skittle the impatient Afghan batsmen for 65 in the T20 match.
Leg-spinner Jeevan Mendis grabbed three wickets for 13 runs and Isuru Udana and Chaturanga de Silva chipped in with two wickets apiece as the Afghans folded up in 17.4 overs.
It was Sri Lanka's first Asiad gold medal since the 2002 Games in Busan when Susanthika Jayasinghe won the women's 100m and Damayanthi Darsha picked up the women's 400m title.
"It is a great feeling to win gold for the country after 12 years," said Sri Lankan captain Lahiru Thirimanne.
"This is a good platform for young emerging cricketers. I just wish India and Pakistan were here too, it would have made it an even better contest."
Afganistan have so far won five silvers – including two in cricket – and six bronzes since starting out in the inaugural Asiad in New Delhi in 1951.
"We had a good chance to win gold but our batsmen just could not settle in," said Afghanistan's captain Mohammad Nabi. "But I am still happy my young team was able to win silver.”
Kazakhs lords of the ring with six golds
Kazakhstan packed a huge punch and became the new boxing power in Asia by sweeping six of the 10 gold medals on offer at the Incheon Games yesterday.
Ilyas Suleimenov (flyweight), Daniyar Yeleussinov (welter), Zhanibek Alimkhanuly (middle), Adilbek Niyazymbetov (light heavy), Anton Pinchuk (heavy) and Ivan Dychko (super heavy) completed the roll of honour on a historic afternoon for the central Asian republic at Seonhak Gymnasium.
China gold medalist fails dope test
Asian Games organisers yesterday kicked out China's gold medal-winning women's hammer thrower Zhang Wenxiu for doping in the most high-profile case yet at the tournament.
The Olympic Council of Asia said 28-year-old Zhang, who won a bronze medal at the 2007 world championships and 2008 Olympics, had tested positive for the anabolic agent zeranol.
Zhang is the sixth athlete to be kicked out of the Games in Incheon, South Korea for doping and the second gold medal-winner after Malaysia's wushu champion Tai Cheau Xuen.
Meanwhile, Indian boxer Sarita Devi has made an "unconditional apology" for her refusal to accept her Asian Games bronze medal in protest at judging decisions, said the International Boxing Association.
"I regret and apologize. Such an incident will never reoccur in the future," she was quoted as saying.
The Games organisers accepted Devi's gesture.
Like Sports on Facebook, follow @ETribuneSports on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ