The Asia Cup 2023 final between India and Sri Lanka in Colombo on Sunday (September 17) turned out to be a lopsided affair as the former crushed the latter by 10 wickets.

Riding on Mohammed Siraj’s six-wicket haul (6/21), the Men in Blue bundled out the hosts for a mere 50 in 15.2 overs after being asked to bowl first.

Chasing the paltry target, skipper Rohit Sharma didn’t come out to open the inning alongside Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan was sent instead. The duo of Gill (27*) and Kishan (23*) made light work of the chase to seal the deal in just 6.1 overs.

After the game, Ishan Kishan credited the bowlers for India’s title win.

“The bowlers were on point today. I would like to give credit to bowlers. Siraj and Bumrah. It's not easy to bat in the second innings. We were prepared for any challenge, we spoke about it in the team meetings,” Ishan told the broadcaster.

The southpaw admitted that he likes to open the innings and was thankful to Rohit for giving him a chance at the top.

“I always love to open, the total wasn't much, so it was a big yes (when asked to open) from my side. Can't do much when you have only 50 runs on the board. But thanks to the skipper,” Ishan said.

“We know our roles, we know how to prepare for the World Cup. We are playing against Australia, and I will be batting in the middle-order,” he added.

Meanwhile, Kuldeep Yadav credited Rohit Sharma for his stunning bowling display in the Asia Cup 2023. The wrist-spinner won the Player-of-the-Series award after India won the continental event for the eighth time.

Kuldeep returned with nine wickets from five matches, including a five-wicket haul against Pakistan in Super 4s.

“From last one and a half years, been working on my rhythm. Being more aggressive through the crease. Loving my bowling. In T20s also the length matters a lot. It's about not thinking about wickets, just about the lengths,” Kuldeep said after the game.

“Have worked hard on that. Credit goes to Rohit bhai. He encouraged me to work on my speed. When fast bowlers give you couple of wickets in powerplay, it becomes easy for spinners,” he further stated.

It was India’s record-extending eighth Asia Cup title win and their second under Rohit Sharma’s leadership.

India will now host Australia in a three-match ODI series from September 22 while they will open their World Cup campaign against Australia in Chennai on October 8.