 "Skipper Tilak Varma top-scored for India A in their Emerging Teams Asia Cup (T20) Group B clash against Pakistan A with a knock of 44 off 35 balls. PTI")
Tilak Varma and Anshul Kamboj led the way as India A registered a thrilling seven-run win over Pakistan A to begin their ACC Men’s T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup campaign on an ideal note in Al Amerat, Oman on Saturday.
Skipper Varma top-scored for his side with a 35-ball 44, helping India A finish on a competitive 183/8 after opting to bat with openers Prabhsimran Singh (36 off 19) and Abhishek Sharma (35 off 22) guiding the Indians to a flying start.
Kamboj then chipped in a haul of 3/33 that included two wickets in as many overs inside the powerplay, while fellow seamer Rasikh Salam (2/30) and Nishant Sindhu (2/15) also collected a couple of wickets each to help India A restrict Pakistan A to 176/7 in reply.
As It Happened | India A vs Pakistan A, Emerging Teams Asia Cup, Group B match in Al Amerat
Arafat Minhas top-scored for the Pakistanis, who had thrashed their arch-rivals in the final of the 2023 edition that was played in the 50-over format, with a knock of 41 off 29 balls.
Yasir Khan (33 off 22) and Abdul Samad (25 off 15) too made handy contributions to take Pakistan A close to the 184-run target while left-arm wrist spinner Sufiyan Muqeem was the pick of the Pakistani bowlers with figures of 2/28.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsVerma and Co, however, managed their nerves better in the tense slog overs to successfully defend the target and begin their campaign with a ‘W’ next to their name.
Not only did India shine with the bat and ball, they also delivered an impressive performance in the field, particularly through Ramandeep Singh, who made a stunning catch and saved vital runs in the closing moments.
Openers Abhishek and Prabhsimran unleashed an aggressive assault on the pace attack, sending the ball flying across the field.
Abhishek slapped consecutive boundaries in the first over, while Prabhsimran followed suit by dispatching Zaman Khan for a four and a six in the next over, setting a vibrant tone.
Together, they struck eight boundaries and five sixes, propelling India A to an impressive 68 without loss during the Powerplay.
However, the introduction of spin after the Powerplay slowed their momentum, leading to the loss of both Abhishek and Prabhsimran in quick succession. This brought skipper Verma and Nehal Wadhera (25) to the crease.
As the pitch became increasingly sluggish, Verma took on the anchor role, while Wadhera and Ramandeep (17) found the boundaries.
After losing two wickets to the pace of all-rounder Kamboj early in the chase, Yasir and Qasim Akram (27) began to attack fiercely.
However, a spectacular catch by Ramandeep at deep midwicket broke their partnership, dismissing Yasir. In the same over, left-arm spinner Nishant made his mark by removing Akram.
Minhas top-scored for Pakistan but it was Abdul Samad who blazed away to 25 off 15 balls. Samad walked in when Pakistan needed 58 more to win but the 26-year-old hit a six and two back-to-back boundaries off Vaibhav Arora in the 16th over to bring down the equation to 42 off 24 balls.
Samad continued to chip in with Pakistan needing 17 off the last over but the big-hitter was sent marching off the first ball by Anshul with India completing a memorable win.
Brief Scores: India A 183 for 8 in 20 overs (Tilak Verma 44, Prabhsimran Singh 36; Sufiyan Muqeem 2/28).
Pakistan A 176 for 7 in 20 overs (Arafat Minhas 41, Yasir Khan 33; Anshul Kamboj 3/33).
With PTI inputs