"Our Only Game Plan Was...": Babar Azam On How Pakistan Tried To Fight India

After suffering a defeat by five wickets against arch-rivals India in Asia Cup 2022, Pakistan skipper Babar Azam heaped praise on the Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya, who took Men in Blue to a thrilling victory. The crucial partnership between Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya helped India defeat arch-rivals Pakistan in a thrilling clash by five wickets in the second match of the Asia Cup 2022 here at Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday.

"He did very well in bowling and in batting as he finished off the game was great. According to me, he is a very good all-rounder," said Babar Azam said in a post-match press conference.

Jadeja smash 35 while Pandya hammered 33 in 17 balls. For Pakistan, Mohammad Nawaz bagged three and Naseem Shah scalped two wickets.

"Our only game plan was to take the game as deep as possible. Naseem Shah bowled very well and took crucial wickets for the team. Unfortunately, we couldn't finish but I think Nawaz should be given credit for performing well in the pressure game. The shortfall remained with our partnership. The toss doesn't matter, the team's efforts matter. And my team performed very well. It was a big match for Naseem Shah but still, he did very well. It was his confidence, the way he has shown his advance," he added.

Chasing 148 runs, India got off to a bad start as they lost their opener, KL Rahul, without even scoring a run. Rahul's wicket brought Virat Kohli out on the crease, who played his 100th T20I on Sunday.

With one wicket loss, the Indian experienced duo of Rohit Sharma and Kohli played with caution but kept smashing the boundaries to keep the scoreboard running.

Virat Kohli was in red-hot form as he kept smashing boundaries to keep India in a hunt of the run chase.