According to Aakash Chopra, Sri Lanka has been effectively eliminated from the 2025 Champions Trophy qualifying campaign following their devastation by New Zealand on Thursday.
The Lankan Lions were swept out for 171 after being asked to bat first in their last 2023 World Cup league encounter in Bengaluru. The Kiwis beat the low-scoring mark with five wickets and 26.4 overs to spare, ensuring a place in the semi-finals.
In a video posted to his YouTube account, Aakash Chopra discussed the game and predicted that Sri Lanka will not qualify for the next Champions Trophy. He stated:
“Sri Lanka’s situation has been extremely ordinary. I feel they will bid goodbye to the Champions Trophy in the end because they are at No. 9. So their Champions Trophy is gone. They are not going to move up, all their matches are finished.”
Aakash Chopra
The former India opener hailed New Zealand’s bowlers for helping his team grab an early advantage. He went on to say:
“New Zealand won the toss and decided to bowl, and they came out firing on all cylinders. It seemed like they would get them all out for 25, wickets were falling one after the other. If Kusal Perera’s catch had been taken, the job would have been done and dusted.”
Aakash Chopra
Kusal Perera, who was dropped behind the wickets by Tom Latham, slammed a 28-ball 51. The Black Caps, on the other hand, continued hitting, with the swashbuckling opener’s dismissal in the 10th over leaving the 1996 World Cup champions at a dangerous 70/5.
Aakash Chopra mocks Sri Lanka’s top-order woes
Aakash Chopra stated that Sri Lanka’s top order was destroyed. He elaborated:
“The scoreboard was looking funny. Pathum Nissanka scored two, Kusal Mendis scored six, Sadeera Samarawickrama scored one, Charith Asalanka scored eight, and Angelo Mathews scored 16. Maheesh Theekshana and Dilshan Madushanka scored a few runs in the end and took them to 171 but nothing was going to happen.”
Aakash Chopra
Chopra applauded New Zealand’s aggressive attitude in the run chase, which almost assured them a semi-final spot. He stated:
“New Zealand came to play with the intention of finishing it early. They knew that the bigger the margin of their win, the more difficult it would be for the others to knock them out. They lost four matches in a row, they weren’t a team like that. So it was a slight setback but they are back on track.”
Aakash Chopra
Despite being ninth in the rankings with no games remaining, Sri Lanka may still finish in the top eight and qualify for the Champions Trophy. They would require at least two of the Netherlands, Bangladesh, and England to lose their respective final games convincingly enough to fall below the Lankan Lions’ net run rate.
