COLOMBO -UNS: India beat Pakistan by 228 runs in the Asia Cup Super Four match in Colombo on Monday. Pakistan batting line-up fell like a house of cards. The Green Shirts posted 128 runs in 32 overs.
Earlier, India set a target of 357 for Pakistan after they resumed batting at 147/2 against Pakistan on reserve day of the Super Four match of Asia Cup at Colombo.
Pakistan in pursuit of the mammoth total lost four wickets – Imamul Haq, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman and Mohammad Rizwan – with 78-4 from 19.5 overs.
Earlier, an impressive third wicket partnership of 233 runs between Virat Kohli (122) and KL Raul (111) helped the team build a mammoth total against Pakistan.
The match resumed earlier in the day with no over lost.
Meanwhile, Haris Rauf has been ruled out of the Asia Cup contest due to injury.
Earlier, the ground at Colombo’s stadium was covered with thick sheets as downpour began on the reserve day for a crucial Pakistan-India match of Asia Cup.
The conditions were not favourable for cricket in Colombo as the match between Pakistan and India was likely to be affected by rain today.
Since late night, Colombo had been receiving drizzling intermittently and was overcast with strong winds.
Intermittent rain is forecast throughout the day today, with more heavy rain expected during the afternoon hours.
In the ongoing match in Colombo, Pakistan won the toss and invited India to bat first.
On Sunday rain washed out play which is about to resume today (Monday) as India were 147/2 at the start of the 25th over against Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2023 Super Fours match in Colombo.
As many as 75 overs were washed out on Sunday due to the heavy downpour.
Cricket rivalry between the India–Pakistan is one of the most strong sports rivalries globally and cricket lovers forever wait for their clash eagerly.
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A storm made its way to the Premadasa Stadium with the covers moved immediately, according to ESPNcricinfo. India are 146/2 at the end of the 24th over. India lost two quick wickets at 123 at the end of the 18th over against Pakistan.
Captain Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill both struck 50s in the opening stand. Later Shadab Khan sent Sharma back to the pavilion, Shubman Gill was also shown the door by Shaheen Shah Afiridi.
Pakistan earlier won the toss against arch rival India and elected to field first in an important match of Super 4 stage in the Asia Cup 2023.
The high-voltage Asia Cup 2023 match between Pakistan and India is being played at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo. Millions of fans from both the countries are waiting for the nail-biting contest eagerly.
There is a significant risk of rain interrupting the second Pakistan vs India fixture in the 2023 Asia Cup, with Colombo having experienced a wet week in the approach to the match, and with the forecast suggesting there is a chance of thunderstorms today.
The city doesn’t usually see this amount of rain in September, and has hosted the ODI cricket successfully at this time of year in the past, though some matches have been rain-reduced.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) posted a photograph on its X (formerly Twitter) account, showing the skies appeared to be clear.
There is a reserve day for the Pakistan vs India match, though the only Super Four game will have that luxury.
However, the umpires will try to achieve a result on the match day itself. In case there is a delay or an interruption, the hours of play can be extended by 90 minutes.
If the match cannot be completed on Sunday, the teams will attempt to finish it on Monday, continuing from where they left off.
The PCB had been on board with plans to move the Colombo Asia Cup matches to Hambantota – a drier venue at this time of year – but those plans were abandoned at the last minute by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC).
The ACC essentially claimed that it was too late to move the matches, as travelling fans would have already made plans to watch the games in Colombo.
The first match between these two teams had been rained out, but that was in Pallekele. On that occasion, India were dismissed for 266 in 48.5 overs. Pakistan could not begin their chase because of the weather.
For today’s fixture, Pakistan team will land in the stadium with three fast-bowlers and three spinners.
The bowling attack of Pakistan consists of Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf and Faheem Ashraf. The spinners include Shadab Khan, Iftikhar Ahmad and Salman Agha.
The Pakistani team had a rigorous training session yesterday for the high-voltage match. Both the teams had played 133 ODIs and Pakistan won 73 while India could win 55 matches.
In the history of Asia Cup, both the teams played 18 matches and India is ahead here in the tournament. India won nine Asia Cup matches while Pakistan could win six matches and three matches remained without any result.
