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- Oct 2, 2004
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Very few know the art of survival better than the Asia Cup. It's endured through boycotts by both India and Pakistan, apathy from administrators, fluctuating fandom, seasonal revision of trophies, and even a raging pandemic. Furthermore, it hasn't shied away from switching between formats just so as to stay relevant.
It's no surprise then, that the Asia Cup has restyled itself into an enabler for Indo-Pak cricket in the last few editions. After all, it's the only tournament outside ICC events where the two teams meet and therefore, the organizers have left no stone unturned to ensure that this big match isn't washed out like the last one. In a helter-skelter, unpopular move in view of bad forecast, a reserve day has been brought in place to save the fixture - a luxury extended to no other fixture but the final. Well, you really are one of a kind, Asia Cup.
That said, no one would mind seeing an India vs Pakistan match to completion. And never more than now, when the last one left us wanting for more before a much-anticipated World Cup in "home" conditions, where both teams know that they have a genuine shot at glory. So now's the time for them to suss each other out, gain ascendancy locally and land the first blow.
Pakistan nearly did that in Pallekele, hurting India through Shaheen Shah's left-arm angles with the old ball and new. That sight, it must be said, felt far too familiar for how seldom these two sides play each other, and India's top-order would be desperate to talk back. And there's no better place to do it than in Asia Cup's quiet and quaint setting in Colombo, before the noise in cricket's largest setting in Ahmedabad comes for you.
Of the six teams participating, Pakistan have comfortably looked the best side in the tournament. The batters have done well setting a target as well as chasing it, but they would hope for some runs from Fakhar Zaman who's had a good year but a quiet last month or so. The fast bowlers have made people sit up and watch, so much so that Shoaib Akhtar has been reminded of the "old days".
It makes sense; Naseem Shah's bowling rockets, Shaheen's thinking his "best is yet to come" and Haris Rauf's doing everything right and fairly wanting to be the Player of the Tournament. All that's great but where Pakistan need to step up are their overs with spin. Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya cracked open that weak link pretty easily last week, and other good batters, of whom there will be plenty at the World Cup, will do it too. The last thing you want is some late lower-order partnership, about which captains have never been keener, to wipe out the damage inflicted by the faster bowlers.
To talk about India's campaign, it's been far from perfect. If the top-order batting came a cropper against Pakistan, the bowling and fielding against Nepal was "below par" in Rohit Sharma's words. They dropped three catches inside the first five overs and the bowling, barring Ravindra Jadeja, looked rusty. They, though, will be boosted by the return of Jasprit Bumrah, who has re-joined the team, but it would take more than just him to outdo an in-form Pakistan. They are the team to beat in the tournament and luckily, India will have a maximum of two days to try and do that. There might or might not be a result still but we already have a winner: the Asia Cup.
When: Sunday, 10 September 2023 at 3:00 PM local/IST
Where: R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
What to expect: Long build-ups on telly and ball-by-ball commentaries. Because the forecast is diabolical with thunderstorms forecast right through Sunday. It's very likely that the reserve day is kicked into play but as irony would have it, the forecast for Monday reads even worse at the moment.
The pitch at Colombo is likely to be the slowest and most spin-friendly in the tournament so far, and will definitely have something in it for the bowlers after all the sweating under covers. Run-scoring was difficult in the last ODI played here, with Pakistan's 268 in the first innings proving more than enough; the spinners went on to pick six of the 10 Afghanistan wickets to fall.
Team news:
Pakistan
Naseem Shah hurt his arm while trying to field in the Super Four match against Bangladesh but in some good news, he returned to bowl later in the innings. With three days to recover, Naseem should be fit to go. Mohammad Nawaz might find his way back into the XI after he was left out in favour of Faheem Ashraf on a slightly pace-friendly track in Lahore.
Both Babar Azam and Fakhar Zaman have a negative match-up against Kuldeep Yadav, so watch out for the spinner's early introduction into the attack.
Probable XI: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (w), Agha Salman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf
India
Bumrah is back after his personal visit to India and should slot straight back in. KL Rahul, who had been recuperating at NCA Bengaluru, has also linked up with the squad in Colombo but will he get his middle-order spot and the keeping gloves back right away? Ideally, the in-form Ishan Kishan, who is also left-handed and helps break the right-hand monotony in the middle-order, makes for a better pick. India could opt for Axar Patel over Shardul Thakur if the pitch looks dry.
Since 2022, Virat Kohli has made his runs inside the PowerPlay at a strike-rate of 67 and an average of 19. That lack of form upfront is something Pakistan will look to sustain.
India Squad: Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan(w), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Tilak Varma
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All posters please take note of the following guidelines for match threads on PakPassion:
1. No personal insults at other posters, players, officials, coaching staffs etc.
2. No making fun of player's, official's, coaching staff's names.
3. Do not add any references to media, their social media or post any pictures or screenshots from other sports websites.
4. Stick to commenting on this match. There is no need to bring other countries into the match discussion as there are plenty of other threads where those discussions can be added.
==
==
Very few know the art of survival better than the Asia Cup. It's endured through boycotts by both India and Pakistan, apathy from administrators, fluctuating fandom, seasonal revision of trophies, and even a raging pandemic. Furthermore, it hasn't shied away from switching between formats just so as to stay relevant.
It's no surprise then, that the Asia Cup has restyled itself into an enabler for Indo-Pak cricket in the last few editions. After all, it's the only tournament outside ICC events where the two teams meet and therefore, the organizers have left no stone unturned to ensure that this big match isn't washed out like the last one. In a helter-skelter, unpopular move in view of bad forecast, a reserve day has been brought in place to save the fixture - a luxury extended to no other fixture but the final. Well, you really are one of a kind, Asia Cup.
That said, no one would mind seeing an India vs Pakistan match to completion. And never more than now, when the last one left us wanting for more before a much-anticipated World Cup in "home" conditions, where both teams know that they have a genuine shot at glory. So now's the time for them to suss each other out, gain ascendancy locally and land the first blow.
Pakistan nearly did that in Pallekele, hurting India through Shaheen Shah's left-arm angles with the old ball and new. That sight, it must be said, felt far too familiar for how seldom these two sides play each other, and India's top-order would be desperate to talk back. And there's no better place to do it than in Asia Cup's quiet and quaint setting in Colombo, before the noise in cricket's largest setting in Ahmedabad comes for you.
Of the six teams participating, Pakistan have comfortably looked the best side in the tournament. The batters have done well setting a target as well as chasing it, but they would hope for some runs from Fakhar Zaman who's had a good year but a quiet last month or so. The fast bowlers have made people sit up and watch, so much so that Shoaib Akhtar has been reminded of the "old days".
It makes sense; Naseem Shah's bowling rockets, Shaheen's thinking his "best is yet to come" and Haris Rauf's doing everything right and fairly wanting to be the Player of the Tournament. All that's great but where Pakistan need to step up are their overs with spin. Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya cracked open that weak link pretty easily last week, and other good batters, of whom there will be plenty at the World Cup, will do it too. The last thing you want is some late lower-order partnership, about which captains have never been keener, to wipe out the damage inflicted by the faster bowlers.
To talk about India's campaign, it's been far from perfect. If the top-order batting came a cropper against Pakistan, the bowling and fielding against Nepal was "below par" in Rohit Sharma's words. They dropped three catches inside the first five overs and the bowling, barring Ravindra Jadeja, looked rusty. They, though, will be boosted by the return of Jasprit Bumrah, who has re-joined the team, but it would take more than just him to outdo an in-form Pakistan. They are the team to beat in the tournament and luckily, India will have a maximum of two days to try and do that. There might or might not be a result still but we already have a winner: the Asia Cup.
When: Sunday, 10 September 2023 at 3:00 PM local/IST
Where: R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
What to expect: Long build-ups on telly and ball-by-ball commentaries. Because the forecast is diabolical with thunderstorms forecast right through Sunday. It's very likely that the reserve day is kicked into play but as irony would have it, the forecast for Monday reads even worse at the moment.
The pitch at Colombo is likely to be the slowest and most spin-friendly in the tournament so far, and will definitely have something in it for the bowlers after all the sweating under covers. Run-scoring was difficult in the last ODI played here, with Pakistan's 268 in the first innings proving more than enough; the spinners went on to pick six of the 10 Afghanistan wickets to fall.
Team news:
Pakistan
Naseem Shah hurt his arm while trying to field in the Super Four match against Bangladesh but in some good news, he returned to bowl later in the innings. With three days to recover, Naseem should be fit to go. Mohammad Nawaz might find his way back into the XI after he was left out in favour of Faheem Ashraf on a slightly pace-friendly track in Lahore.
Both Babar Azam and Fakhar Zaman have a negative match-up against Kuldeep Yadav, so watch out for the spinner's early introduction into the attack.
Probable XI: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (w), Agha Salman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf
India
Bumrah is back after his personal visit to India and should slot straight back in. KL Rahul, who had been recuperating at NCA Bengaluru, has also linked up with the squad in Colombo but will he get his middle-order spot and the keeping gloves back right away? Ideally, the in-form Ishan Kishan, who is also left-handed and helps break the right-hand monotony in the middle-order, makes for a better pick. India could opt for Axar Patel over Shardul Thakur if the pitch looks dry.
Since 2022, Virat Kohli has made his runs inside the PowerPlay at a strike-rate of 67 and an average of 19. That lack of form upfront is something Pakistan will look to sustain.
India Squad: Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan(w), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Tilak Varma
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All posters please take note of the following guidelines for match threads on PakPassion:
1. No personal insults at other posters, players, officials, coaching staffs etc.
2. No making fun of player's, official's, coaching staff's names.
3. Do not add any references to media, their social media or post any pictures or screenshots from other sports websites.
4. Stick to commenting on this match. There is no need to bring other countries into the match discussion as there are plenty of other threads where those discussions can be added.
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