Asia Cup 2023: Why Pakistan Were 'All Out' Despite Losing 8 Wickets Against India

11.09.2023 - 18:37 sports.ndtv.com

Pakistan were completely outplayed by the Indian cricket team as the Babar Azam-led side succumbed to a 228-run defeat in the Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 match on Monday.

The batters never looked quite comfortable against the Indian pace attack but it was Kuldeep Yadav who was the pick of the bowlers with a brilliant five-wicket haul.

The game ended when Pakistan lost eight wickets as both Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah were not cleared to bat after suffering niggles during the game.

While Rauf did not take the pitch at all on Monday, Naseem bowled 9.2 overs for his side but left the field due to injury. Pakistan skipper Babar Azam was not pleased with the performance of his side's batters and in the aftermath of the match, he praised Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj. "Weather not in our hands - but both bowling and batting. (How Rohit and Shubman attacked Pakistan's main bowlers) They had a plan for our bowlers.

cricket India Cricket Team Pakistan Cricket Team cup Babar Azam Shaheen Shah Afridi Kuldeep Yadav Haris Rauf Naseem Shah India Pakistan

Kusal Mendis' 91 and an unbeaten 49 by Charith Asalanka helped Sri Lanka edge out Pakistan by two wickets in a last-ball thriller of the Asia Cup to set up a final clash with India. Chasing a DLS revised target of 252 in the 42-overs-a-side contest in Colombo, Sri Lanka needed eight from the final over and achieved the target with Asalanka's winning hit on the last ball. A raucous home crowd rejoiced but the result broke the heart of millions of fans awaiting an India-Pakistan final in the 50-over tournament, a prelude to the upcoming ODI World Cup.

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Team India will be squaring off against Sri Lanka in the much-awaited final of the ongoing Asia Cup on Sunday in Colombo. In Super 4 stage of the tournament, Team India thrashed Pakistan by 228 runs, followed by a 41-run victory over Sri Lanka in the next match. However, the Rohit Sharma-led side fell short by six runs in their last Super 4 match against Bangladesh. On the other hand, Sri Lanka registered a thumping two-wicket win over Pakistan in a last-ball thriller and sealed their Asia Cup 2023 final berth. It will be interesting to see that which team will now clinch the prestigious title.

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Virat Kohli and Babar Azam have been two of the most celebrated batters among the modern-day greats. The sub-continent players have impressed in all three formats. Virat Kohli has so far played 111 Tests (8676 runs, average 49.29), 279 ODIs (13027 runs, average 57.38) and 115 T20Is (4008 runs, average 52.73). Pakistan captain Babar Azam, on the other hand, has so far played 49 tests (3772 runs, average 47.74), 107 ODIs (5380 runs, 58.47 average) and 104 T20Is (3485 runs, Average 41.48). Though Babar Azam is relatively much younger between the two, a comparison between has always dominated the narrative.

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