Written by: Waseem Abbas
Posted on: August 30, 2023 | 
| 中文
Pakistan's Imam ul Haq plays a shot against Afghanistan
The Asia Cup 2023 is scheduled from August 30 to September 12, as the defending champions, Sri Lanka, will be looking to defend its title. Asia Cup, which was initially planned to be played in Pakistan, has been scheduled in both Pakistan and Sri Lanka after India refused to travel to Pakistan for the event. This year, the Asia Cup has been designed to be in the 50-overs format keeping the ODI World Cup in view, which is set to be played in India in October-November later this year. All the squads have been announced, resulting in increased anticipation of the Asian cricket festival.
Sri Lanka, Asia Cup 2022 Champions
Asia Cup is usually played between six teams, and the participating teams this year include Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Nepal and Bangladesh. The six teams have been divided into two groups: Pakistan, India and Nepal in Group A, while Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka in Group B. Each team will face the other two teams in its group and the top two teams from each group will qualify for the Round two. In the second round, each team will play a game against the other three teams, and the top two teams from this round will play each other in the final of the Asia Cup. Asia Cup has been planned in such a way as to maximize the number of matches between the arch-rivals, Pakistan and India, to generate maximum revenues from the highly anticipated contest. It is expected that Pakistan and India will qualify for Round 2, as Nepal is the weakest team in the tournament, and if both teams do well in the second round, they will face each other in the final as well. As this Asia Cup will be played in ODI format, Pakistan and India are the strongest contenders for the trophy, while Sri Lanka is also a balanced team.
Pakistani and Indian players shake hands after their match during the Asia Cup 2023
The middle order of the Indian team is its Achilles heel, otherwise it is perfectly balanced with all bases covered. Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul have been directly drafted into the team, and both are returning to competitive cricket after a long hiatus caused by injuries. Surya Kumar Yadav and young Tilak Verma also got the selectors' approval, while Sanju Samson could not make it to the 17-member squad, despite having an incredible ODI record, which ignited debates of favoritism and injustice. How Sanju, who boasts an average of 55.71 with a healthy strike rate of 104 in ODI cricket, got dropped for Surya Kumar, who has a miserly average of 24.33 and a strike rate of 101.38, is mind-boggling. Maybe the selectors are banking on SuryaKumar to translate his T20I success to ODI cricket, and only time will tell whether the Indian selectors and Rohit Sharma’s bets have paid off or not. Tilak, who is yet to make his ODI debut, got the nod over Sanju, probably because he is a left-hander, has the ability to bat in the middle order and can also serve as a part-time off-spin bowler.
India's bowling lineup is shaping up to be one of the best in the competition, as Shami and Siraj are joined by fit-again Jasprit Bumrah and Pradesh Krishna. In the spin bowling department, Kuldeep Yadav joins all-rounders, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel, which makes it an ‘all-left’ spin attack. Someone like Yuzvendar Chahal could have been a better choice, in place of any spinner or a fast bowler.
India’s main spinners, Jadeja and Kuldeep, along with other players
The problem with India is to find the right balance that caters to all the demands of the game. While all their batsmen are of the highest caliber, the problem lies with the fact that none of them can bowl a couple of good overs in the middle of the game. Rohit jokingly confessed as much in a recent press conference saying, "Sharma and Virat will roll their arms, if needed, in the World Cup.". Moreover, the same problem lies with their bowlers as well, as all of their premier bowlers are not very good at batting. The depth in batting allows the top order to play attacking cricket that brings the opposition under pressure.
Bangladesh has handed the captaincy to veteran Shakib ul Hasan for the Asia Cup, and the subsequent World Cup, and it will be eager to exert its influence in the spinning tracks of Asia, as they have proved to be a hard nut to crack in such conditions. With senior players like Mushfiq, Litton Das and Shakib along with youngsters Towhid Hridoy and Najam ul Hasan Shanto in the team, Bangladesh’s batting will be their strongest suit. Their bowling, barring Shakib, Mustafizur Rehman and Taskin Ahmed, lack the necessary experience and skills to succeed at this level.
Bangladesh team
Nepal’s inexperienced squad has reached Pakistan, which has only one international superstar, Sandeep Lamichhane, in their whole squad, while all other players have only played against weaker sides and associate teams. Although, it will be a big challenge for Nepal to compete against Pakistan and India in the first round, nonetheless, it will be a big learning opportunity for them.
Nepal team
Pakistan has shown time and again that it has what it takes to challenge good teams on big occasions. Pakistan's fast bowling is imperious and they are good wicket-takers, while their spinners are experienced and economical, which makes it a good bowling combination. Pakistan's top order looks settled with Imam, Fakhar and Babar Azam, while Pakistan has to find the right balance in the middle, as it appeared from the Afghanistan series that we lack a solid and technically sound middle-order player to sail the ship during the middle overs. Saud Shakeel is one such option, while Haris Suhail is another, who can be a good choice.
Babar Azam playing a shot against Afghanistan, 24 August 2023
Sri Lanka, which won the Asia Cup 2022 by defeating Pakistan, will be facing a lot more challenges this time. Firstly, it is in the ODI format, which is not their strongest format, as they have lost all their five games against the top 6 ranked ODI sides since August 2022. Moreover, a couple of injuries to their main players have daunted their preparations for the Asia Cup. Despite that, Sri Lanka cannot be taken for granted, as they have talent and experience at their disposal that can challenge any team. Pathum Nissanka, Charith Aslanka, Dimuth Karanutna and De Silva are good batters who can score big in their home conditions, while Wanindu Hasaranga is in the best form ever and will play a crucial role for the team, as he topped both batting and bowling charts in the recently concluded Sri Lankan Premier League. If he is fit and plays the tournament, he can be the wild card for the Lankans.
Team Pakistan Against Sri lanka in the 2022 Asia Cup final
Afghanistan will be eager to make a statement in this Asia Cup, as the conditions best suit their game style. The spinning tracks of Asia provide a good opportunity for their world-class spinners to exploit the conditions. Rashid Khan, Muhammad Nabi, Mujeeb and Noor Ahmed can dismantle any batting lineup in Asia. While their batters like Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Shahidi, Nabi and Rehmat Shah can post modest scores that their bowlers will be defending. The major area of concern for Afghanistan is their fast bowling, and it will be hurting them big time in the coming months. In the recently concluded ODI series versus Pakistan, Afghanistan's spinners took 13 wickets at an impressive average of 28.38 and an economy of 4.336, while their fast bowlers took 10 wickets at an average of 37.6 at an economy of 6.708. The difference is stark and alarming, which Afghanistan would like to rectify.
Rashid Khan, Virat Kohli, Shakib ul Hasan, Naseem Shah and Babar Azam are the five players to watch out for in this Asia Cup. While the likes of Shadab Khan, Charith Aslanka, Rehman Ullah Gurbaz, Jasprit Bumrah and Imam ul Haq, amongst others, can also stun the pundits. Sri Lanka has won six Asia Cup titles, India has lifted seven, while Pakistan has succeeded in two editions only. The 16th edition of the Asia Cup will be crucial for all the Asian countries to prepare for the upcoming World Cup, starting within three weeks of the Asia Cup’s conclusion. A win in the Asia Cup will give a big boost going forward to the megaevent.
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