Asia Cup 2008

Pakistan snatch victory from India at Asia Cup Super Fours

The Asia Cup 2008 saw clash of the two titans India and Pakistan meet in a match that was always meant to be a thriller - it always is. Not only was today’s match a thriller, it was a KNOCKER.

Scorecard

India started it’s innings with a blast, as Sehwag and Gambhir both fired right from the word ‘go’. A solid start and a first wicket partnership of 88 almost ensured a very high total for India - earlier expected to be around 340/350 mark. But the Pakistani bowlers struck at the right moment and they did strike hard. Before they could realise, India was already 129/4 losing Sehwag, Gambhir, Raina and Yuvraj. With their top order gone, Dhoni and Rohit Sharma gave shape to the innings for over a 100 run partnership, one that can be referred to as a sensible aprtnership. Irfan Khan provided the few fireworks towards the end. Dhoni remained the backbone of today’s Indian innings as they post a strong total of 308/7. for Pakistan, Iftikhar Anjum did most of the damage by taking 3 wickets of Gambhir, Yuvraj and Sharma followed by Abdur Rauf who took 2 wickets of Sehwag and Raina. Sohail Tanvir gave away 87 runs in his 10 overs and the only solace he could find was in the wicket of MS Dhoni towads the end.

As for Pakistan, just two words describe their innings - Younus Khan. Salman Butt and Nasir Jamshed gave Pakistan a great start with a 65 runs opening stand before Salman Butt was run out. This was probably the only time the Indians could afford a smile in the game. Pakistan did find trouble as Nasir Jamshed was retired hurt when he was going strong at 53. But Younus Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq took the game away with one of the best partnerships seen in the series of 144 runs. Younus Khan scored an unbeaten 123 runs of just 117 balls which included 11 fours and a six. On the other end, Misbah-ul-Haq gave full support to score 70 runs of just 62 balls which included 7 fours and one six. India should have played RP Singh instead of Piyush Chawla on such a flat pitch.

Pakistan won the match convincingly by 8 wickets and 27 balls to spare.

Over 600 runs were scored today, and despite a total of 308, Dhoni’s bowlers failed miserably both in terms of controlling runs or taking wickets. There were many fielding lapses and it was pretty clear that India need to rethink while choosing their bowlers for the next game as the pitch is flat and the bowl isn’t turning.

Full credit to Pakistan who kept their cool in this crucial match and chasing a high total of 308.

Younus Khan was ‘Man of the Match’ and Misbah-ul-Haq given the ‘Special Award’ for his hard-hitting innings to support Younus Khan.

Tomorrow’s match between India and Sri Lanks will probably decide the fate of both India and Pakistan as to who will go to the finals. Best of Luck to both of them.

Tags: abdur rauf, Asia Cup, gautam gambhir, iftikar anjum, India, match review, misbah-ul-haq, MS Dhoni, nasir jamshed, pakistan, rohit sharma, salman butt, virender sehwag, younus khan