Asia Cup 2023: Pakistan qualified for Super 4 as rain-abandoned Indo-Pak match

• Pakistan and India’s Asia Cup match was canceled due to rain.
• Pakistan qualified for the Super 4 stage of the tournament.
• Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya scored fifties for India.

The much-anticipated Asia Cup 2023 match between Pakistan and India had to be canceled due to rain in Kandy, Sri Lanka, on Saturday.

Persistent rain prevented Pakistan from having the opportunity to chase down India’s target of 267 runs, leaving them without a chance to bat in the match.

The match’s cancellation also signifies that Pakistan has secured a place in the Super 4 stage of the tournament.

If India manages to win their final group game against Nepal on September 4, the arch-rivals will have another showdown on September 10 during the Super Four stage.

In the earlier part of the match, India, having won the toss and opting to bat first against Pakistan at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, were dismissed for a total of 266 runs.

Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya played crucial innings, both scoring fifties, which helped India recover from a precarious position of 66-4 within the first 15 overs, bringing their team back into the game.

Pandya (87 runs off 90 balls) and Kishan (82 runs off 81 balls) combined brilliantly, contributing 138 runs in 141 balls for the fifth-wicket partnership.

.@hardikpandya7 raises his bat! 🙌🏻😍

A superlative performance from the #TeamIndia all-rounder under the circumstances, setting 🇮🇳 up for the slog overs.

Tune-in to #AsiaCupOnStar, LIVE NOW on Star Sports Network#INDvPAK #Cricket pic.twitter.com/c41w8aNyYG

— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) September 2, 2023

Pacer Shaheen Afridi stood out as Pakistan’s top bowler, taking 4 wickets for 35 runs in his 10 overs. His victims included the key wickets of Pandya, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravindra Jadeja.

Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah were also instrumental for Pakistan, each securing three wickets during the match.

First time in Asia Cup (ODI) history that all 10 wickets have been taken by pacers 🎯

Quality stuff by @iShaheenAfridi, @iNaseemShah and @HarisRauf14 ☄️#PAKvIND | #AsiaCup2023 pic.twitter.com/sThyT8ckef

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— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) September 2, 2023

Pakistan retained the same lineup that secured a 238-run victory against Nepal on Wednesday.

Prior to today’s match, India held the advantage over Pakistan in Asia Cup (ODI) history, with seven victories in 13 matches. In contrast, Pakistan had secured five wins, and one match had ended with no result. Additionally, Pakistan had faced defeat in four out of their last five encounters with India in the Asia Cup, with their most recent win dating back to 2014 in Mirpur. This particular match was memorable for Shahid Afridi’s heroics, as he smashed two consecutive sixes against Ravichandran Ashwin in the final over to secure Pakistan’s victory.

The Asia Cup 2023 is scheduled to take place in Pakistan and Sri Lanka from August 30 to September 17.

Out of the total matches in the Asia Cup 2023, four will be held in Pakistan, with the remaining nine, including the final, taking place in Sri Lanka.

In the Asia Cup 2023, Pakistan is placed in Group A, along with Nepal and India. Group B consists of Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Sri Lanka.

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The Asia Cup 2023 will see the top two teams from each group, Group A and Group B, advance to the Super 4 stage of the tournament.

Lineups

India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan (wk), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Siraj

Pakistan: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Agha Salman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Haris Rauf.

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