In the highly anticipated Asia Cup 2023 clash between India and Pakistan in Kandy, star Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi made a significant impact by taking crucial wickets, including those of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. The match had faced an unfortunate disruption due to rain earlier, disappointing cricket fans worldwide.
The much-anticipated contest promised a thrilling battle between Pakistan’s formidable pacers and India’s top-order batters. However, the fears of rain affecting the game materialized when the match was halted in the fourth over, with India having already scored 15 runs. Pakistan had begun their Asia Cup 2023 campaign with a resounding 238-run victory over Nepal just a few days earlier.
Here are the videos of the dismissals:
कप्तान साब के डंडे उड़ गए 🤬#PAKvIND #AsiaCup #AsiaCup23 #RohitSharma #ShaheenAfridi pic.twitter.com/zSe2YwhfDm
— HR_in_RajasthanRoyals (@HrithikRoars) September 2, 2023
#ShahidAfridi on 🔥🔥 …
Laka Khamaar..🔥🔥#ViratKohli down again..Mission done…#PAKvIND #AsiaCup23 👍👏 32/2 7.1 pic.twitter.com/zJPZs7D9Aj— Stay @ Home Stay Safe (@ImranUsafzai) September 2, 2023
This match marked India’s first appearance in the tournament. Captain Rohit Sharma, after winning the toss, chose to bat first and emphasized the need to focus on their performance despite the weather challenges. He stated, “There is a bit of weather around but we cannot think about it too much. Embrace the challenge, embrace the situation. We had a six-day camp in Bangalore where we worked on our skills.”
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Acknowledging the quality of the Asia Cup with top-tier teams, Sharma mentioned the additions to the Indian squad since their last ODI series in the West Indies, including the return of Shreyas and Bumrah, the presence of Shardul, Hardik, and the spinners Kuldeep and Jadeja.
On the other hand, Pakistan’s captain Babar Azam expressed his preference to bat first, highlighting his team’s familiarity with the playing conditions after playing a significant amount of cricket in the region. He said, “To be honest, we also wanted to bat first. We have played a lot of cricket here in the last one and a half months, so we know the conditions.”
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In terms of historical performance in the Asia Cup, India holds the upper hand against Pakistan with seven wins in 13 ODIs. Pakistan has secured five victories, and one match ended without a result. Moreover, Pakistan has faced challenges in recent encounters with India in the Asia Cup, losing four of the last five matches, with their last win dating back to Mirpur in 2014. As the game resumed after the rain interruption, the cricketing world was eager to witness how the battle between these two cricketing giants would unfold in the Asia Cup 2023.
