Pak vs Ind: Rain interferes with the game, but Pakistan and India still advance to the Super 4s.

 Pak vs Ind: Rain interferes with the game, but Pakistan and India still advance to the Super 4s.

Fans had great expectations for a thrilling contest between Pakistan and India in the highly anticipated Asia Cup 2023 encounter on Saturday, but rain played spoiler and dashed their hopes.

Yet, thanks to a strong day in the field, the Green shirts qualified for the Super 4s despite not having to bat because their run chase was abandoned owing to heavy rain.

At the Pallekele Cricket Stadium's inning break, rain fell once more in Kandy.

Before to it, rain twice interfered with the Indian innings, much to the dismay of cricket fans.

Pakistan had been set a 267-run goal by the Men in Blue after they won the toss and decided to bat first. The bowlers allowed the national side to get back into the game, but the Indian squad was eventually dismissed for 266.

After Rohit Sharma made the decision to bat first, Pakistan's premier seamers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf quickly destroyed the Indian top order. Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya, however, continue to add points to their side's total.

Indian middle-order batsmen rallied after Pakistani pacers quickly removed four important batters, and by the 27th over, they had amassed a total of more than 130.

However, in the later stages of the innings, the Pakistani pacers struck again and dealt the Men in Green three successive blows. At a critical juncture, the deadly bowling performance got the team back into the game.

Shardul Thakur and Kuldeep Yadav were the final two dismissals, both coming off the bowling of Naseem Shah. Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf each took three wickets.

Pakistan, despite the draw, advanced to the Super 4s round as their Asia Cup 2023 campaign got off to a strong start on Wednesday with a huge 238-run victory over Nepal.

As this was India's opening match in the competition, victory over Nepal was absolutely necessary.

Given the structure of the Asia Cup, it is possible that Pakistan and India will play each other again soon.

Playing XI

Pakistan: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain) Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf.

India: Rohit Sharma (capt), Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan (wk), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah.

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