Gargi Raut in Dubai
Tension simmered on the morning of September 21, with India and Pakistan taking on each other for the second time in the Asia Cup. A series of dramatic plot twists, accusations and statements preceded the match. While Pakistan cancelled the pre-match press conference, Suryakumar Yadav took questions from the media head on.
India won the toss and chose to bowl, with the match being played on the same track as the last India-Pakistan clash. Hardik Pandya took the new ball again, but while he produced a chance in the very second delivery as Sahibzada Farhan top-edged, Abhishek Sharma could not hold on to the catch.
The first breakthrough came in the third over when Fakhar Zaman edged one to the keeper. Sanju Samson held on to it and while the finger went up, Zaman instantly went up to the third umpire. Even though it looked like it was a close catch, the big screen flashed “OUT” and Zaman had to return to the dugout.
Again, in the fifth over, India dropped a catch. Saim Ayub sent one up in the air off Varun Chakravarty and Kuldeep Yadav dropped an easy one.
By the end of the power play, Pakistan had racked up 55 runs with the loss of just one wicket. Farhan soon brought up his 50 in just 35 balls as he and Saim Ayub continued their onslaught. But it was short-lived as Abhishek took a brilliant catch to send Ayub walking back to the pavilion. It was Shivam Dube who provided India’s second breakthrough.
By the end of 11 overs, Pakistan had put on over a hundred runs on the scoreboard. But India’s fourth breakthrough came when Dube’s ploy of bowling wide paid off. Farhan hit it towards Suryakumar at extra cover. Farhan not only lost his wicket but also his bat.
Lower down the order, Mohammad Nawaz played an important cameo, scoring 21 of 19 but eventually lost his wicket to a run-out caused by the Indian skipper in the penultimate over. Pakistan ultimately put up 171 runs on the scoreboard with valuable contributions from captain Salman Agha (17) and Faheem Ashraf, who went all guns blazing with a 250 strike rate. He ended the innings not out with 20 runs off only eight balls.
Will India be able to chase the target down or will pressure get the better of them?
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