Sri Lanka’s last night victory against India has simplified the equation for Pakistan as another win in Asia Cup 2022 whether today or on Friday against Sri Lanka will take green shirts into the final.
In the Super 4 Stage of Asia Cup 2022, Pakistan beaten India at Dubai on September 4 by 5 wickets and secured 2 crucial points. Whereas Sri Lanka have already 4 points after beating Afghanistan & India, and are very much in the driving seat.
If Pakistan defeat Afghanistan at Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Wednesday night, they will cement their place in the final along with Sri Lanka on Sunday. In that case, India and Afghanistan will be eliminated from the tournament, and their tomorrow’s match would just merely be a bilateral contest.
However, Afghanistan wouldn’t be that easy competitor as though Pakistan won both the previous T20Is against them at Sharjah on December 08, 2013 and at Dubai on October 29, 2021 but both of them were nail biters.
#AFGvPAK has always been an #EpicEncounter, and this #Super4 fixture🏏 in the DP World #AsiaCup 2022 looks to be no exception. 🔥#AFGvPAK #ACC #GetReadyForEpic #AsiaCup2022
— AsianCricketCouncil (@ACCMedia1) September 7, 2022
Two star players from Pakistan and Afghanistan – Babar Azam and Rashid Khan – haven’t so for been as much impactful as their respective previous records indicate. In his three innings of Asia Cup 2022, Babar Azam has managed to score just 33 runs while Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan has merely picked up 4 wickets so far including 3 against Bangladesh.
Both these players have faced each other five times in T20s in the past. In those matches, Rashid Khan dismissed Babar five times, conceding 58 runs off 48 balls.
Mohammad Rizwan surpasses Babar Azam in T20 Rankings, clinches top spot
Meanwhile, the wicket-keeper batsman Mohammad Rizwan has sealed the top position in ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings while Babar Azam has slipped to the second position.
Rizwan snatched the top spot from his Captain after he scored 43, 78, and 71 runs in his three innings of Asia Cup 2022.
In T20 Internationals, Rizwan has represented Pakistan in 59 matches and after playing 48 innings, he maintains a batting average of 52.97 with 128.75 strike rate.
Earlier last night, Sri Lanka won a thriller against India.
Batting first, India scored 173 runs for 8 in 20 overs at Dubai. The Captain Rohit Sharma smashed 72 runs off just 41 balls.
In reply, Sri Lanka reached the target for the loss of 4 wickets with just one ball remaining. Their openers Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis built the 97-run partnership, providing the team a solid platform to chase down the score easily.
Tags: PTV Sport Live #PAKvAFG #AFGvPAK #ACC #AsiaCup2022 #INDvsSL #ICCRankings Muhammad Rizwan Babar Azam
