Batting in the middle order is a fast-disappearing art. The demands of numbers four and five vary with batters sometimes coming in at the fall of early wickets needing to stabilize and sometimes coming in with the license to go and the pressure to add quick runs to push the score. In Charith Asalanka’s case, he was tasked with closing out a chase against Pakistan, taking the game deep and absorbing all the pressure thrown at him.

Charith Asalanka is everything a number five player could ask for. He bats in the middle-order, can find the gaps and rotate strike, was their under-19 captain, and can also bowl off-spin at a more than handy level. As a batter, though he does not have the effortlessness or fluency of a Dhananjaya De Silva, but knows how to get the job done.

Since 2021 no batter has made more runs at number five than Charith Asalanka. He did the same at a fast pace and has made the spot his own. A decent top-order doing their job and protecting him from the new ball has helped, but Charith Asalanka has taken Sri Lanka from a time where they would collapse after the loss of their top three to finding ways to continue to go on, barring the case against India where the line-up collapsed collectively.

In the Asia Cup, with Dasun Shanaka and Dhananjaya De Silva underperforming the onus was on him. In the end without any flashy or glory shots, Charith Asalanka did get the job done, winning a game almost on his own after a collapse against Pakistan. His job though did not stop with the bat in recent times.

In his brief career, Charith Asalanka has been a handy off-spinner capable of bowling a few silent overs in the middle, in the mould of a Suresh Raina. Against India though, with a track turning square, Charith Asalanka went from a side attraction to the center of attention, competing with Wellalage on his way to a four-wicket haul.

He has proven that he can do what is needed of a number five, playing the three-dimensional role and also showing flexibility with the bat. His game against the new-ball though needs to be tested a bit more with Asalanka succumbing easily to the Indian pacers in the Asia Cup Final, but Asalanka surely has the potential to make a career out as Sri Lanka’s middle-order batter.