Although there were many speculations regarding the inclusion of Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul in the squad surfaced right after the squad announcement, many experts backed the board’s decision.
Before heading to the match, Shreyas Iyer opened on playing Asia Cup 2023 and said “was nervous last night, couldn’t sleep”.
Shreyas Iyer on Playing Asia Cup 2023
As per the Asia Cup 2023 schedule, India and Pakistan were scheduled to clash on September 2 in Pallekele.
The 16th edition of the Asia Cup tournament is scheduled to play between August – September and will be jointly hosted by Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Asia Cup 2023 will also be the first of its kind to be co-hosted by multiple countries.
Four matches of the Asia Cup 2023 will be played in Pakistan while the remaining nine matches of the tournament will be played in Sri Lanka.
Pakistan who played the tournament opener match against Nepal registered a massive 238 runs defeat and holds the top of the points table. As of their first encounter, Pakistan named their playing 11 much earlier and showed a strong positive approach against India.
Shreyas Iyer expressed his feelings right after being named in playing 11 for the Asia Cup match against Pakistan.
Shreya Iyer said “I never imagined I’ll be playing Asia Cup. The recovery was slow and steady. I passed the fitness test one week before selection, and I was really happy with that. I was nervous last night, couldn’t sleep. I am super excited to play this match against Pakistan. It’s a phenomenal feeling to be honest as they are the number 1 team at the moment”.
“We are privileged to be a part of this team and journey with Rahul sir (Dravid) as the coach and under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy. The spirits are high in the dressing room and we are looking forward to this game. Delighted to be playing against these (Afridi, Rauf, Naseem) bowlers, the plan is just to watch the ball and play according to the situation”, he added.
Earlier, Pakistan captain Babar Azam opened on losing the toss where they were forced to bowl first while they were planned to bat first.
After winning the toss, the Indian skipper decides to bat first. Unable to withstand the Pakistan bowler’s aggressive bowling attack, the Indian top order collapsed for just 66 runs.
After losing 4 wickets for 66, Ishan Kishan and Hardik made a crucial partnership and led India to score beyond the 200 runs mark. Haris Rauf broke the partnership by dismissing Kishan for 82 runs while Shaheen Afridi dismissed Hardik Pandya while India scored 239 runs. At the end of 48.5 overs, India scored 266 runs and lost all their wickets.
