Afghanistan head coach Jonathan Trott expressed his disappointment following his team’s defeat against Sri Lanka in Match 11 of the Asia Cup 2025. The Rashid Khan-led side lost a do-or-die encounter by six wickets, ending their campaign in the continental tournament. Trott, a former English batter, praised Mohammad Nabi and the batting lineup for posting a competitive total but stressed that mistakes in bowling and fielding cost the team dearly.

“It was a very disappointing loss and a hard one to swallow. We felt we were in a good position, especially after Nabi’s heroics helped us reach 170 [169]. The batters actually played well, but we let them off with our bowling and fielding,” Trott told India Today. He emphasized that Afghanistan’s inability to start strongly with the ball gave Sri Lanka an early advantage in the match.

Trott also acknowledged the opposition’s achievement, noting that Sri Lanka became the second team from Group B to advance to the Super Four stage. “We didn’t start well in the powerplay with the ball and gave them an early advantage. Too many basic errors, whether in batting, bowling, or fielding cost us. You don’t win games at cricket, certainly in tournaments like this with those mistakes. Full credit to Bangladesh, who go through along with Sri Lanka,” he added.

Nabi’s Late Blitz Not Enough as Sri Lanka Prevails

Afghanistan decided to bat first and made 169 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in their 20 overs. Besides that, Nabi (60* off 22) made the innings explosive, scoring five sixes in the last over of the innings. His innings could not prevent Sri Lanka from winning. Kusal Mendis (74* off 52) and Kamindu Mendis (26* off 13) played a leading role in scoring the runs and led the team to an easy victory.

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On the bowling side of the game, Nuwan Thushara was tremendous for Sri Lanka as he picked up four wickets (4/18 in four overs), while Fazalhaq Farooqi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, and Noor Ahmad conceded 117 runs in 9.4 overs. With Sri Lanka's stronger powerplay of 53/2 in the first six overs, it seemed to set the standard for the chase, as well as expose the failings of Afghanistan in all three departments.