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Preview: It’s time for the marquee contest of the 2023 Asia Cup —India vs Pakistan in Pallekele. This group match will act as a dress rehearsal of what’s to come — The two teams face off against each other again in the ODI World Cup on 14 October in Ahmedabad. But between now and then, the arch-rivals could meet thrice in the Asia Cup. Should both India and Pakistan qualify for the Super Fours, they will lock horns in Colombo on 10 September, and could meet once again if the two teams make the Asia Cup final on 17 September. India will be without the services of KL Rahul, who is out of the first two games with a niggle. However, India are ready to welcome back Shreyas Iyer, who has missed almost six months of competitive cricket due to a back injury he suffered in March. Also returning to the ODI side is Jasprit Bumrah, who had missed almost a year’s action of cricket due to a recurring back injury. Bumrah recently made his India comeback in the three-match T20I series against Ireland in Dublin, captaining the side to a 2-0 series win. Bumrah picked four wickets in that series, and would be raring to go once again, in the Asia Cup. With Rahul not fit yet, that gives Ishan Kishan another chance to shine. Kishan scored three successive half-centuries in the ODIs against West Indies, and would be looking to continue that run of form and maybe even amass a century. Kishan and Shreyas Iyer could very well fit in that middle-order, with skipper Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill most likely to open. Shaheen Shah Afridi remains Pakistan’s X-factor especially thanks to his ability to strike with the new ball. Another pacer in form is Haris Rauf, who took two wickets against Nepal. Shadab Khan, however stood out against Nepal with four wickets, but will face a different challenge against India altogether. Babar Azam, the Pakistan skipper, remains the team’s most valuable batter and with Mohammad Rizwan and Iftikhar Ahmed’s presence, that adds stability to the middle-order batting. What could spoil all the fun on Saturday is the weather. Rain is predicted for Saturday, with 76 per cent chance of it during the day, while overnight thunderstorms are also predicted. But, nevertheless, let’s hope the rain Gods stay away and we witness a full-fledged cricket match. Squads: India: Rohit Sharma (captain), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Sanju Samson (travelling reserve). Pakistan: Babar Azam (captain), Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Haris, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir (travelling reserve).
India vs Pakistan Highlights, Asia Cup 2023: Rain plays spoilsport as India, Pakistan split points
India vs Pakistan Highlights, Asia Cup 2023 Latest Updates: Incessant rain in Pallekele forces the match officials to call the remainder of the match off after Pakistan bowl India out for 266.
 "India vs Pakistan Highlights, Asia Cup 2023: Rain plays spoilsport as India, Pakistan split points")
That brings us to the end of our coverage of the India vs Pakistan Group A match in Pallekele, and with the eagerly-anticipated encounter ending in an anticlimax after an intense battle between the Pakistan pacers and the Indian batters.
The action shifts to Lahore on Monday, where Afghanistan — the only team to not play a game so far — face Bangladesh. India then face Nepal in Pallekele on Monday, with a washout guaranteeing them a place in the Super Fours.
On behalf of the everyone here at Firstpost, this is Amit signing off, wishing you all a happy and joyous Sunday!
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The washout also means that hosts Pakistan are the first team to qualify for the Super Fours!
India, face Nepal in their next outing on Wednesday, and while they are expected to defeat them and join Pakistan in the next stage, it will be quite difficult for them to dislodge their arch-rivals from the top of the Group. Pakistan currently have the best Net Run Rate of all teams (+4.760) thanks to their 238-run victory in the tournament opener in Multan, and unless India come up with an even more one-sided win on Monday, are likely to top Group A.
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JUST IN: THE MATCH HAS BEEN CALLED OFF! The Indian and Pakistani players end up shaking hands as no further play is possible, with Pakistan staying on top of Group A with three points to their name.
Turns out it would have taken 45 minutes for the Pallekele ground staff to get the ground ready for Pakistan’s chase. And that would have happened AFTER it stopped raining, which appeared unlikely at that point.
Safe to say it would have been virtually impossible for the umpires to restart the contest by the cut-off time of 10.27 pm for a 20-over chase.
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ICYMI: Shreyas Iyer made his long-awaited return from a back injury that had kept him out of action in competitive cricket since March. Though he got off to a promising start, he was ultimately dismissed for 14 after pulling a short delivery from Haris Rauf straight to Shadab Khan at midwicket.
**Click here to watch Rauf’s dismissal of Iyer**India vs Pakistan LIVE
UPDATE: The cut-off for a 20-over contest — the minimum number of overs needed for a result — is 10.27 PM local time (and IST). So that’s a little over 40 minutes from now. Let’s hope the weather clears out by then.
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MILESTONE ALERT: This is the first time in the history of the Asia Cup (ODI) that all 10 wickets in an innings have been taken by pacers. Shaheen Afridi (4/35) collected four while Naseem Shah (3/36) and Haris Rauf (3/58) collected three wickets each.
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Here are the revised targets for Pakistan in case there’s a reduction in overs:
45 overs: 254
40 overs: 239
30 overs: 203
20 overs: 155
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UPDATE: No official word from the umpires yet. But what we can see is the covers being brought out again, with the rain suddenly getting heavier. The Indians are forced to head back to the dressing rooms, and Pakistani openers Fakhar Zaman and Imam-ul-Haq never really stepped out in the first place.
We continue to twiddle our thumbs as rain continues to hold up play.
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UPDATE: The latest visuals show the two umpires having a chat in the middle with the covers having been entirely taken off and no sign of rain at the moment. The Indian players are also starting to make their way to the centre. So play is set to start any minute now. All that’s left is an official confirmation on reduction in overs.
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ICYMI: Shaheen Afridi once again won a battle against the Indian top-order, castling both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in a superb powerplay spell to push the Indians on the backfoot.
Afridi would go on to collect another couple of wickets in the business end of the Indian innings and finish with figures of 4/35.
**Click here to watch Afridi's dismissals of Rohit and Virat**India vs Pakistan LIVE
UPDATE: There will be an inspection in Pallekele at 9 pm local time (also IST). So another 15 minutes before we get to know whether there will be a reduction in overs or not.
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The umpires walk out to the centre to have a word with the Pallekele ground staff, with the two teams still sitting in their respective dressing rooms. Shortly after, we see the groundsmen slowly starting to take the covers off. Looks like the weather has eased a bit.
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Pakistan’s chase of the 267-run target was supposed to have started by now, but the covers are still out at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium with rain refusing to relent. More than 30 minutes have passed since the final Indian wicket fell, and match referee Javagal Srinath might just start considering DLS calculations if play continues to be held up like this.
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It was the 138-run partnership between Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya that helped India post 266 against Pakistan despite most of the batters being disappointing.
The duo also received high praise on social media platform X.
**_Click here_** to check the reactions and summary of how India’s innings panned out.
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Meanwhile, the covers have been brought out by the Pallekele ground staff with rain picking up after the fall of the final wicket. The two teams will hope the rain clouds disperse by the time the innings break comes to an end.
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After 48.5 overs,India 266/10 ( Mohammed Siraj 1 , )
OUT! Bumrah ends up playing a shot too many and ends up holing out to the man stationed at deep midwicket while looking to clear the fence, as India are bowled out for 266 after skipper Rohit Sharma elects to bat. Naseem Shah finishes with figures of 3/36 after going wicketless for a majority of the innings. The Men in Blue had been reduced to 66/4 at one stage before Ishan Kishan (82) and Hardik Pandya’s (87) knocks helped add another 200 runs for the next six wickets. Will this be enough for the Jasprit Bumrah-led attack to defend? Only time will tell.
Bumrah c Salman b Shah 16(14)
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FOUR! Bumrah clears his front leg and decides to take the aerial route over mid off off a full delivery from Shah right after Kuldeep’s dismissal. Can he get a couple more of these? IND 266/9
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OUT! Shah strikes for a second time today as Kuldeep departs for 4 after nicking the ball to the keeper while trying to guide a short-of-length ball from the pacer through the off side. IND 261/9
Shah c Rizwan b Shah 4(13)
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After 48 overs,India 261/8 ( Kuldeep Yadav 4 , Jasprit Bumrah 12)
Bumrah and Kuldeep decide to play it safe and see off the final over of Afridi’s spell as the left-arm pacer signs off with excellent figures of 4/35. Two more overs to go, can the ninth-wicket pair guide the Indians past 280 from here?
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After 47 overs,India 257/8 ( Kuldeep Yadav 2 , Jasprit Bumrah 11)
FOUR! Valuable runs these for the Men in Blue, with Jasprit Bumrah collecting a second boundary in as many overs, this time driving a full delivery from Rauf pitched outside off. Five runs off Rauf’s penultimate over. Bumrah’s quite the handy batter down the order, and it shows.
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After 46 overs,India 252/8 ( Kuldeep Yadav 1 , Jasprit Bumrah 7)
FOUR! Now there’s a sight that fast bowlers usually hate — getting hit for a boundary by a fellow pacer from the opposition! Bumrah decides to take the aerial route down the ground off a length ball from Afridi, and gets enough timing on the shot for it to go all the way. The Indians will hope he can get a few more of those in the remaining overs.
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After 45 overs,India 246/8 ( Kuldeep Yadav 0 , Jasprit Bumrah 2)
The reintroduction of Afridi and Shah has brought the Pakistanis back into the game and how! Not only does Afridi strike twice in his first over of a new spell, but Shah also ends up getting a wicket to his name with the dismissal of Thakur. India had been eyeing a score of 300 with Kishan and Pandya at the centre, but right now they might just consider themselves lucky if they get past 270 from here.
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OUT! This is turning into a procession now, with Shardul Thakur getting the marching orders not long after Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja’s dismissals. Thakur gets a thick leading edge, and Shadab pedals back to pull off an impressive catch as Naseem finally has a wicket to his name today! IND 242/8
Thakur c Khan b Shah 3(3)
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After 44 overs,India 242/7 ( Shardul Thakur 3 , Kuldeep Yadav 0)
OUT! Two wickets in one over for Afridi at the start of a new spell as Ravindra Jadeja ends up getting caught-behind off the left-arm pacer’s bowling to depart for 14. Fourth wicket for Afridi, who had dismissed Rohit and Kohli in his powerplay spell!
Jadeja c Rizwan b Afridi 14(22)
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OUT! Afridi strikes right away after being reintroduced in the 44th over, deceiving Pandya with the slower ball as the India vice-captain misses out on a maiden ODI hundred after driving the ball straight to the man at short extra cover. Afridi managed to keep this at a fuller length, and Pandya committed himself into the drive, resulting in an aerial shot straight in the direction of the fielder. IND 239/6
Pandya c Salman b Afridi 87(90)
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After 43 overs,India 239/5 ( Hardik Pandya 87 , Ravindra Jadeja 14)
Another excellent over from Naseem with just two singles coming off it. The tearaway quick has conceded just 27 runs from seven overs so far, although the wickets column continues to remain empty.
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After 42 overs,India 237/5 ( Hardik Pandya 86 , Ravindra Jadeja 13)
Naseem returns to the attack at the start of Powerplay 3 of the Indian innings, and is hitting the 90mph mark right away at the start of a new spell. Concedes five off his sixth over including a couple of doubles to Jadeja. Shadab ends up conceding 11 in the following over including a boundary each to Jadeja and Pandya.
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FOUR! Another misfield by the Pakistanis, this time by Salman at backward point following a firm cut by Pandya off Shadab. The amount of extra runs that they’ve given away today due to misfields could cost them dearly later. IND 237/5
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FOUR! Half-tracker from Shadab, and Jadeja pulls this through the midwicket region to collect his first boundary! Two fielders converge near the boundary, but are unable to prevent it. IND 230/5
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After 40 overs,India 221/5 ( Hardik Pandya 80 , Ravindra Jadeja 3)
FOUR, FOUR, DOT, FOUR! Pandya has decided to take the attack to Rauf almost right after the latter’s dismissal of Kishan! Goes for a firm cut behind point at the start of the pacer’s eighth over and decides to play the next one, a quick delivery angled into the body, with soft hands to guide it wide of the keeper and away to the third man fence for back-to-back fours. Rauf tries to bounce Pandya out two balls later but the Gujarat Titans captains responds with a superb hook in front of square! Pandya moves to 80 at the end of the second powerplay, and will hope to bat through the remainder of the innings and guide India to a competitive total from here.
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After 39 overs,India 209/5 ( Hardik Pandya 68 , Ravindra Jadeja 3)
Excellent seventh over from Rauf, in which he gets rid of Kishan and gives away just a single. Shadab returns in the following over, replacing Nawaz after the latter’s 16-run over. Five off the over, including a brace to Jadeja off the final over as the spin-bowling all-rounder, who joins Pandya after Kishan’s wicket, gets off the mark.
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OUT! A tired shot from Ishan Kishan, who had been hobbling while running between the wickets in the previous over, getting a top edge while looking to pull a short-of-length ball from Rauf for a maximum. Results in a sitter near mid on, and the wicketkeeper-batter has to depart for an excellent 82 off 81 deliveries. IND 204/5
Kishan c Babar b Rauf 82(81)
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After 37 overs,India 203/4 ( Ishan Kishan (W) 82 , Hardik Pandya 65)
Massive over from Nawaz, conceding a four and a six to Kishan and Pandya respectively in his first three deliveries. Both batters also collect a brace each later in the over, with the left-arm spinner conceding 16 in his eighth over. The Men in Blue go past 200 with 13 overs left in their innings.
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SIX! Hardik Pandya gets down on one knee and slog sweeps a fuller delivery from Nawaz, and this time he comfortably clears the midwicket fence that was vacant anyway. IND 198/4
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FOUR! Kishan crouches low and pulls a half-tracker from Nawaz over the midwicket region! The ball lands just short of the boundary rope. IND 191/4
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After 36 overs,India 187/4 ( Ishan Kishan (W) 75 , Hardik Pandya 56)
A single off each delivery barring the sixth in Nawaz’s seventh over. Babar, meanwhile, decides to bring Rauf back into the attack in place of Salman, desperate to break the partnership that has now gone past the century mark. Four off Rauf’s sixth over, including a brace to Pandya in the penultimate delivery.
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After 34 overs,India 178/4 ( Ishan Kishan (W) 72 , Hardik Pandya 50)
And now Hardik Pandya brings up his half-century with a single, taking 62 deliveries to get to the milestone! He’s been the more patient of the two batters currently out in the middle, striking at 80 and collecting three fours along the way. This is the Indian vice-captain’s 11th fifty in the format; can he get to a maiden ODI ton from here? Both batters have gone past fifty and the partnership between them is in excess of hundred. Good signs for India as far as posting a challenging total on the board is concerned.
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After 33 overs,India 168/4 ( Ishan Kishan (W) 66 , Hardik Pandya 46)
Salman continues after the drinks interval, conceding four off his third over including a wide in the final delivery. Nawaz returns from the Hunnasgiriya End, replacing Shadab. Pandya muscles the ball down the ground at the start of the over, with Afridi putting in a slide after running from long on, and appearing to have hurt his left shoulder in the process though he does end up restricting the batter to a single. Two balls later, Kishan brings up the century stand for the fifth wicket with a maximum off Nawaz. The left-arm spinner appeals for LBW in the next delivery, but the Pakistanis decide against going for the review after the umpire turns it down. Replays show the ball hit the top of Kishan’s pad well outside off.
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SIX! Full from Nawaz and bowled into the slot, Kishan decides to swing his arms and ends up comfortably clearing the straight boundary! He moves into the 60s with that hit, bringing up the century stand with Hardik Pandya in the process! The pair consume 111 deliveries to bring up the milestone. IND 167/4
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After 31 overs,India 156/4 ( Ishan Kishan (W) 58 , Hardik Pandya 43)
Salman bowls a much tidier second over, conceding a single each to Kishan and Pandya. Bit of a mix-up between Pandya and Kishan in the subsequent over after the former cuts a slider towards backward point and pushes for a second, only to be sent back by his partner after charging almost halfway down the pitch. Seven off Shadab’s seventh over. Partnership worth 90 at the end of the 31st over. Time for the players to have a drink.
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