Tag: Asia Cup

DUBAI: Sri Lanka sealed a stunning final-over victory over India in the Asia Cup 2022 Super Four to halt India’s chances for final qualification.

Set to chase 174, Sri Lanka sealed the victory on the second-last delivery of the final over as their skipper Dasun Shanaka and Bhanuka Rajapaksa stole the final two runs courtesy of over-throw.

The side were off to a flying start to their run chase as the openers – Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis thrashed Indian bowlers in the opening overs and laid a solid foundation with an astounding 97-run partnership.

The pair appeared solid and were looking to drive their team home comfortably before Yuzvendra Chahal’s twin strikes in the 12th over brought India back into the game.

Experienced spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who made his return to the Indian side, provided third breakthrough for India as he removed Danushka Gunathilaka for a mere one.

Chahal then struck again for India in the next over and removed the danger man Mendis and strengthened India’s position in the game. Mendis top-scored for Sri Lanka with 57 off 37 deliveries, laced with four boundaries and three sixes, while Nissanka followed back with a quick 52.

Following the slump, Shanaka and Rajapaksa held their nerves calm in a tense run chase and completed a thrilling victory over the defending champions as Sri Lanka got to 174/4 in 19.5 overs.

Shanaka scored a magnificent 33 off just 18 deliveries, while Rajapaksa remained unbeaten with a brilliant 25.

Chahal led the bowling attack for India with three wickets, while Ashwin made one scalp.

Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka put India into bat first after the coin flipped in his favour and the bowlers responded well as they provided a solid start to the hosts by claiming two early wickets.

Batting first, India had a dismal start as they lost KL Rahul and Virat Kohli in quick successions and as a result, slipped to 13/2 in the third over. Rahul could only score six, while Kohli bagged a four-ball duck.

Rohit then joined hands with Suryakumar Yadav and launched a counterattack on Sri Lankan bowlers as the pair amassed 97 runs for the third wicket in just 57 deliveries.

The pair appeared solid and seemed to have brought India back into the game before Chamika Karunaratne removed the danger man Rohit, who top-scored for India with a blistering 72 off 41 deliveries, laced with five boundaries and four sixes.

India’s top-ranked T20I batter Suryakumar also walked back after two overs in an attempt to scoop the ball over the wicketkeeper but ended up handing a straightforward catch to the third man. He scored 34 off 29 deliveries with the help of a boundary and a six.

The men in blue then began to lose wickets at an alarming rate and in the end finished at 173/8 in the allotted 20 overs.

Madushanka led the way for Sri Lanka with the ball as he bagged three wickets for 24, while Karunaratne and Dasun Shanaka claimed two each. Maheesh Theekshana, on the other hand, made one scalp.

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LAHORE: Pakistan wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan will be available for selection in the national team’s next Asia Cup Super Four clash against Afghanistan, scheduled on Wednesday.

According to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Rizwan, who seemed to have sustained an injury during the anticipated clash between the arch-rivals Pakistan and India, will be fit for the side’s tomorrow’s fixture against Afghanistan.

Rizwan, however, will enjoy a rest day today and will not participate in the team’s scheduled practice session, in order to be completely fit for the Afghanistan match.

Earlier, the details suggested that the right-handed batter was suspecting a strain in his right leg. Rizwan had an improper landing on his right leg as he jumped to gather the bouncer off Mohammad Hasnain’s bowling and laid on the ground in gruelling pain.

The wicketkeeper batter, however, carried on to keep wickets for the rest of the innings and also displayed great determination in a tense run chase. He top-scored for the side with an anchoring knock of 71 runs and batted for almost 17 overs.

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NEW DELHI: With his recent statement doing rounds all over social media, a top BCCI official claimed that everyone in the Indian team as well as management supported the star Indian batter, Virat Kohli, during his rough patch. 

“Virat has had backing of everyone. From his teammates to everyone at the BCCI. To say that he did not get the support, is not true,”said a senior Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) official as reported by InsideSport, an Indian sports website.

“He was granted break to rejuvenate, he got frequent rest. Even everyone at BCCI wished him on social media when he stepped down from Test captaincy. So, I don’t know what he is talking about,” he added.

Former Indian captain Kohli has created a sensation with his revelation at the post-match press conference on Sunday, saying that nobody supported him during a low phase of his career and it was only MS Dhoni who texted him personally after he announced to quit Test captaincy.

“When I left Test captaincy, I only received a message from one person and I have played with that person in the past. That person is MS Dhoni, anyone else did not message me. Many people have my number, and there are many people who give me suggestions on the TV,” Kohli stated.

Furthermore, the BCCI official clarified that there was no rift between the board and the veteran batter saying that his role in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup in Australia would be of utmost importance.

“There is no bad blood between Kohli and anyone in BCCI. Everyone respects him for his contributions to Indian cricket. He is a very important player across all three formats. He has hit form at the right time. We only wish he continues that run. It will be crucial for Team India in Australia,” the BCCI official said.

The right-handed batter looks in sublime touch in the ongoing T20 Asia Cup as he top-scored for India with a brilliant 60 against Pakistan in a much-anticipated Super Fours clash on Sunday. So far he has amassed 154 runs in the tournament, including two back-to-back fifties.

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DUBAI: Pakistan all-rounder Mohammad Nawaz, who played a match-defining 42-run knock in the high-octane Asia Cup Super Fours clash on Sunday, revealed that he was promoted in the batting order to maintain left-hand right-hand combination.

Nawaz spoke to the presser here after his match-winning knock and unveiled the strategy behind his promotion in the batting order.

“The captain and the management decided that I should be sent to maintain a left-right combination,” said Nawaz.

“I tried to give the best performance for my team which was seen today. There was no plan to change my number earlier,” he added.

The all-around player then asserted that playing under pressure had been very beneficial to him and pledged to get better as the burden of responsibility increased on him.

“I benefited a lot from playing under pressure. As an all-rounder, the onus has also increased on me to improve myself,” Nawaz stated.

The left-handed batter then revealed his game plan with Mohammad Rizwan as the duo decided to take the game till the end and lay a solid foundation for Khushdil Shah and Asif Ali.

“I had discussed with Rizwan about taking the match to the end so that Asif and Khushdil can play better,” shared Nawaz.

“The first match against India was also very close, we played under pressure which was quite good for us. Our focus was solely on winning and we will continue to do so. In this match, we were thinking that we might need to tackle short pitch deliveries and we were prepared for that,” he concluded.

It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan avenged their Group A defeat by edge pasting arch-rivals India by five wickets in the Asia Cup Super Fours on Sunday. Nawaz played a match-winning knock for the Green Shirts as he scored a blistering 42 off a mere 20 deliveries after returning with match-winning bowling figures of 1/25.

READ: ‘Only Dhoni messaged me when I left Test captaincy’ reveals Kohli

KARACHI: England’s famous fan page Barmy Army was brutally trolled by Pakistan-India fans for posting a controversial tweet and compared the rivalry between both sides with the Ashes.

Cricket fever was on a high on Sunday as the two bitter rivals – India and Pakistan – came face to face again in a span of one week.

Pakistan clinched a five-wicket thrilling victory over India in the Super Fours of the ongoing Asia Cup 2022 to avenge their Group A defeat.

Earlier on August 28, India claimed an alike victory over Pakistan to start their Asia Cup on a high. The Group A match too went down to the wire before India sealed a thrilling five-wicket victory.

While many cricket enthusiasts and ex-players expressed their pleasure at the exciting matches between the two teams, England’s Barmy Army infuriated supporters on both sides by comparing the Pakistan-India rivalry with the Ashes.

Following the most-anticipated clash, England’s Barmy Army wrote, “Ashes > India vs Pakistan anyway,” a comment that enraged fans from both countries.

Ashes > India vs Pakistan anyway

— England's Barmy Army 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🎺 (@TheBarmyArmy) September 4, 2022

 

Here’s how India and Pakistan fans reacted to the tweet:

Sorry but wrong

— Talal Mazhar (@dummystranger) September 4, 2022

The fact that we you have to tweet this , we understand 🤣

— Arun B (@realarun82) September 4, 2022

A Pakistan fan then took a hilarious dig at England’s Barmy Army and termed the Karachi-Lahore rivalry bigger than the Ashes.

Lahore qalander Vs Karachi kings >>>ashes

— Irfan Khan 👑 (@Nadankhan56) September 4, 2022

A user replied to Barmy Army’s tweet and thanked the English fan page for uniting the Pakistan-India fans.

https://twitter.com/ch3rryw8n3/status/1566626136620437504

Former India cricketer Wasim Jaffer also slammed Barmy Army for the analogy. Referring to England’s humiliating 0-5 defeat in the Ashes.

“If I was an England fan, with the Ashes record Eng has, I’d downplay the Ashes if anything,” Jaffer wrote.

If I was an England fan, with the Ashes record Eng has, I'd downplay the Ashes if anything 😅 #INDvPAK https://t.co/zqFbIyt2lv

— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) September 5, 2022

READ: Mohammad Rizwan to undergo a ‘precautionary’ MRI today 

DUBAI: Pakistan wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan will undergo a precautionary MRI scan today at a local hospital here, Pakistan Cricket Board confirmed.

According to the details, the right-handed batter is suspecting a strain in his right leg. Rizwan had an improper landing on his right leg as he jumped to gather the bouncer off Mohammad Hasnain’s bowling and laid on the ground in gruelling pain.

The wicketkeeper batter, however, carried on to keep wickets for the rest of the innings and also displayed great determination in a tense run chase. He top-scored for the side with an anchoring knock of 71 runs and batted for almost 17 overs.

Rizwan seemed to have to deal with a lot of pain during his match-winning knock and therefore, will be undergoing an MRI scan of his right leg.

It is pertinent to mention here that Rizwan is the only wicketkeeper batter in Pakistan’s squad for the ongoing Asia Cup 2022.

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DUBAI: Pakistan wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan and Mohammad Nawaz shone in a tense run chase before Asif Ali and Khushdil Shah bolstered the men in green to avenge their group match defeat at the hands of their arch-rivals India in the Asia Cup 2022 Super Fours.

Set to chase 182, Pakistan steered over the line on the second-last delivery of the match as Indian pacer Arshdeep Singh failed to defend seven runs.

The Green Shirts had a dismal start to their run chase as their key batter Babar Azam perished cheaply for 14 in the fourth over.

Following his departure, Rizwan then joined hands with left-handed batter Fakhar Zaman and added 41 runs for the second wicket before the latter perished after scoring a snail-paced 15 off 18 deliveries.

Following the slump, all-rounder Nawaz, who was promoted in the batting order changed the dynamics of the game with a blistering knock of 42 runs off a mere 20 deliveries, laced with six boundaries and two sixes.

The duo of Rizwan and Nawaz added a valuable 73 runs for the third wicket in accordance with the mounting run rate. Nawaz, however, fell victim to a slower ball from Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the 16th over.

In the next over, Rizwan also became the victim of a slower delivery from the struggling Indian pacer Hardik Pandya. The right-handed batter top-scored for the side with 71 off 51 deliveries, laced with six boundaries and two sixes.

Khushdil Shah and Asif Ali then stood up for their team and sailed the ball all over the ground to push India on the back foot. The pair appeared solid and were looking to run away with the victory as Pakistan needed just seven off the last over.

Asif’s dismissal off Arshdeep on the fourth delivery of the final over, however, gave a thrilling late twist to the match and the right-handed batter walked back sorrowly despite scoring a blistering 16 off eight deliveries, laced with two sixes and a boundary.

The twist and India’s comeback into the game, however, was denied by Iftikhar Ahmed, who slammed a full-toss over the bowler’s head to seal a thrilling opening victory for Pakistan in the Super Fours.

Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Pandya, Bhuvneshwar, and Arsheep all managed to pick one wicket apiece.

India, after being put into bat first by Pakistan captain Babar Azam, were off to a flying start as they added 54 runs for the first wicket in just six overs.

The duo appeared solid and were scoring at a rapid pace before Haris Rauf struck in his second over to hand Pakistan a much-needed breakthrough in the form of KL Rahul, who departed after scoring 28 off 20 deliveries, laced with a boundary and two sixes.

Following his departure, Rohit’s stay at the crease also remained brief as he perished in the next over to Shadab Khan, who struck on the first delivery of his brilliant spell. The right-handed batter also scored 20 off 16 deliveries with the help of three boundaries and two sixes.

India’s veteran batter Virat then took the responsibility and held his ground while the rest of the batters failed to score significantly with all-rounder Deepak Hooda contributing the most with his brief knock of 16 runs.

Pakistan bowlers did well to halt India’s march into the game and restricted the defending champions to 181/7 in 20 overs.

Virat top-scored for the side with a magnificent knock of 60 off a mere 44 deliveries, laced with four boundaries and a six.

Shadab was the pick of the bowlers for Pakistan as he returned with brilliant bowling figures of 2/31, while Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, and Haris struck out a batter each.

DUBAI: Pakistan wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan and Mohammad Nawaz shone in a tense run chase before Asif Ali and Khushdil Shah bolstered the men in green to avenge their group match defeat at the hands of their arch-rivals India in the Asia Cup 2022 Super Fours.

PAK 182-4 (19.5 Overs)

Arshdeep to bowl the final over

PAK 175-4 (19 Overs)

Bhuvneshwar comes to bowl his last

PAK 156-4 (18 Overs)

Bishnoi comes to bowl his last

PAK 148-4 (17 Overs)

Pandya comes to bowl his last

PAK 139-3 (16 Overs)

15.3: Short of length around off, rolled his fingers over it. Nawaz looks to go over long-off but it bounces a little extra and Hooda pouches it calmly at the boundary.

Bhuvneshwar replaces Pandya

PAK 135-2 (15 Overs)

Chahal comes back

PAK 119-2 (14 Overs)

Pandya comes back into the attack

PAK 107-2 (13 Overs)

Arshdeep comes back into the attack

PAK 96-2 (12 Overs)

Bishnoi replaces Pandya

PAK 86-2 (11 Overs)

Chahal comes again

PAK 76-2 (10 Overs)

Pandya replaces Bishnoi

PAK 67-2 (9 Overs)

Chahal continues

PAK 57-1 (8 Overs)

Bishnoi replaces Arshdeep

PAK 51-1 (7 Overs)

Yuzvendra Chahal replaces Pandya

PAK 44-1 (6 Overs)

Arshdeep replaces Bishnoi

PAK 36-1 (5 Overs)

Hardik Pandya comes to bowl his first

PAK 22-1 (4 Overs)

3.4: Tried to jab it through midwicket, but ends up chipping it straight to the man!

Ravi Bishnoi comes to bowl his first

PAK 19-0 (3 Overs)

Bhuvneshwar continues

PAK 11-0 (2 Overs)

Arshdeep Singh to bowl from the other end

PAK 9-0 (1 Over)

Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan come out to bat for Pakistan. Bhuvneshwar Kumar to lead the bowling attack.

PAKISTAN vs INDIA (2nd INNING)

Virat Kohli led the way for India with an astonishing knock of 60 runs after the openers Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul laid a solid foundation but Pakistan bowlers displayed a combined effort to reduce India to 181/7 in the high-octane clash Super 4s clash of the ongoing Asia Cup 2022.

IND 181-7 (20 Overs)

Haris to bowl the final over

IND 171-6 (19 Overs)

Naseem comes to bowl his last

IND 164-5 (18 Overs)

Hasnain replaces Shadab

IND 148-5 (17 Overs)

Haris replaces Hasnain

IND 140-5 (16 Overs)

Shadab comes to bowl his last

IND 135-5 (15 Overs)

Hasnain replaces Naseem

IND 126-4 (14 Overs)

13.5: Another googly from Shadab but this time he bowled it on a length outside leg. Pant went for the reverse sweep but ended up mistiming it straight to the fielder.

Shadab comes back

IND 118-3 (13 Overs)

Naseem comes back into the attack

IND 105-3 (12 Overs)

Nawaz comes to bowl his last

IND 101-3 (11 Overs)

Hasnain replaces Shadab

IND 93-3 (10 Overs)

5.4: Yadav made no attempt to keep that down, and the top edge meant it was straight down Asif Ali’s throat.

Nawaz comes again

IND 88-2 (9 Overs)

Shadab continues

IND 79-2 (8 Overs)

Nawaz replaces Haris

IND 71-2 (7 Overs)

6.1: Shadab strikes off the first ball. Got to the pitch but got neither the power nor the elevation, and Mohammad Nawaz takes a smart catch.

Shadab Khan replaces Nawaz

IND 62-1 (6 Overs)

5.1: It was up in the air for an aeon and Fakhar Zaman and Khushdil Shah bumped into each other and nearly made a hash of it. Khushdil just about clings on – very good catch, really. Sharma’s blitz comes to a close.

Haris continues

IND 54-0 (5 Overs)

Mohammad Nawaz replaces Naseem

IND 46-0 (4 Overs)

Haris Rauf replaces Hasnain

IND 34-0 (3 Overs)

Naseem continues

IND 20-0 (2 Overs)

Hasnain comes to bowl from the other end

IND 11-0 (1 Over)

KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma come out to bat for India. Naseem Shah to open the bowling attack for Pakistan.

PAKISTAN vs INDIA (1st INNING)

DUBAI: Pakistan won the toss and elected to field first in the high-voltage clash against the arch-rivals India in the Super Fours of the ongoing Asia Cup 2022.

PLAYING XIs

Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain

India: Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Deepak Hooda, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ravi Bishnoi, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh

HEAD TO HEAD

Matches-10, India-8, Pakistan-2

DUBAI: Pakistan won the toss and elected to field first in the high-voltage clash against the arch-rivals India in the Super Fours clash of the ongoing Asia Cup 2022.

PLAYING XIs

Pakistan make one change to their line-up as Mohammad Hasnain comes in for Shahnawaz Dahani, while India make three changes as Hardik Pandya, Ravi Bishnoi, and Deepak Hooda come in for wicket-keeper batter Dinesh Karthik, injured Ravindra Jadeja and Avesh Khan respectively.

Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain

India: Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Deepak Hooda, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ravi Bishnoi, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh

HEAD TO HEAD

Matches-10, India-8, Pakistan-2

DUBAI: Cricket fever has reached its zenith as the two arch-rivals and Asia giants India and Pakistan are set to lock horns once again in a span of one week in the high-octane clash of the ongoing Asia Cup 2022 Super Fours.

In less than a week, the arch-rivals will meet again, and they could do so two more times in the current year.

The two sides last met in the Group A fixture of the ongoing Asia Cup 2022 when India edged past Pakistan by five wickets in a final-over thriller.

All-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya played the pivotal role in the much-needed victory for the defending champions as the duo put on a match-defining 52-run partnership for the fifth wicket.

India, however, will be missing the services of their last match’s top-scorer against arch-rivals Pakistan as Jadeja has been ruled out of the continental event with a knee injury. Whereas, their right-arm pacer Avesh Khan will also miss the anticipated clash due to fever.

The Green Shirts, however, who seek revenge to their last week’s bitter defeat at the hands of their arch-rivals India, sustained an alike setback as their young right-arm pacer Shahnawaz Dahani has been sidelined from the all-important clash with a side strain.

Despite Dahani’s unavailability, Pakistan still have two right-arm pacers – Mohammad Hasnain and Hasan Ali, who can fill into the Playing XI as suitable replacement.

Following the injuries scare, both sides will now be heavily relying on their top-order despite Babar Azam being out of touch, having managed to amass 19 in two matches.

On the other side, Pakistan will be hoping that their spin department works flawlessly and will be overjoyed if Naseem Shah manages to match his performance from the previous time the two Asian powerhouses met.

Before taking the field in a much-anticipated clash India are currently unbeaten in the tournament with two victories in two matches against Pakistan and Hong Kong respectively.

Pakistan, however, managed to win one game out of their two group fixtures against Hong Kong as they thrashed the associate side by a massive margin of 155 runs. The resounding victory might play a morale booster for the Green Shirts.
[totalpoll id=”240608″]

Apart from all these factors, another component that holds importance in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is the toss and due factor. It is often said the side winning the toss in UAE is more likely to win the match as well and the stats too proved it right from the ongoing Asia Cup 2022.

HEAD TO HEAD

Matches-10, India-8, Pakistan-2