Pakistan advanced to the next stage of the Asia Cup by beating the United Arab Emirates by 41 runs at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.
Batting first, Pakistan scored 146 runs for nine wickets in their 20 overs. Fakhar Zaman led the scoring with 50 runs from 36 balls, including two fours and three sixes, achieving a strike rate of 138.88. Captain Salman Agha scored 20 runs off 27 balls, while Shaheen Shah Afridi shone with a rapid 29 not out from 14 balls, featuring three fours and two sixes, at a strike rate of 207.14.
The United Arab Emirates faced difficulties in their reply, being all out for 105 in 17.4 overs. Rahul Chopra made 35 runs off 35 balls, while Dhruv Parashar contributed 20. Shaheen Shah Afridi captured two wickets for 16 runs in three overs, and Abrar Ahmed also took two wickets while giving away just 13 runs. Haris Rauf contributed two wickets for 19 runs.
Pakistan’s bowlers applied constant pressure during the innings, restricting the rivals to a scoring rate of just below six runs per over. Extras added 13 runs to Pakistan’s score, whereas the UAE could only muster 11 extras.
The win guaranteed Pakistan’s advancement to the next round of the tournament. The UAE will aim to regroup following a disappointing chase.
STARTING XI
Pakistan
Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Haris (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha (capt), Khushdil Shah, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed
UAE
Alishan Sharafu, Muhammad Waseem (captain), Asif Khan, Muhammad Zohaib, Harshit Kaushik, Rahul Chopra (wicketkeeper), Dhruv Parashar, Haider Ali, Muhammad Rohid Khan, Simranjeet Singh, Junaid Siddique
