5 best knocks by Indian batsmen in Asia Cup ODIs

The 2018 Asia Cup, which is scheduled to kick off from September 15, will see the giants of Asia battle it out on the cricket field to establish their domination over the subcontinent. The tournament, originally scheduled in India, had to be shifted to the UAE to address the issue of Pakistan’s participation considering the political tensions between the two nations.

As per the new guidelines, the tournament will once again be played in the ODI format with the 50-over World Cup scheduled to be held next year. The tournament will see Afghanistan paired up with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in one group while defending champions India, Pakistan and the winner of the Asia Cup Qualifiers in the other.

The group stage will witness the bottom two teams eliminated and the top two advancing to the Super Four Stage, the winners of which will play each other in the final to take place on September 28. Let us take a look back into the 5 best knocks by Indian batsmen in Asia Cup ODIs.

#5. Sourav Ganguly 135* vs Bangladesh, 2000

Sourav Ganguly’s 135 against Bangladesh in the 2000 Asia Cup in a rain-affected game at Dhaka is one of the best knocks by an Indian captain in Asia Cup history. The game was played over a span of two days with rain interrupting proceedings on the day of the match.

Chasing a stiff target of 250 in the second innings with a strong possibility of Duckworth Lewis coming into play, the Indian skipper stepped up to the occasion and took the attack to a relatively inexperienced Bangladesh bowling attack and played a vital knock of 135 off 124 balls, staying unbeaten till the end.

His knock, which was well supported by Tendulkar, Badani and Azharuddin at the other end ensured that India chased the target comfortably with almost 10 overs to spare to clinch an important win in the tournament.

#4. Suresh Raina 116* vs Bangladesh, 2008

Suresh Raina’s 116 against Bangladesh in the 2008 Asia Cup on a flat wicket at Karachi saw India squeeze their way to a stiff target of 284 at Karachi. India were in desperate need of a partnership after Robin Uthappa and Rohit Sharma were dismissed cheaply with more than 200 required for India to win the match.

Suresh Raina, who walked in to bat after the loss of Rohit Sharma’s wicket, did not disappoint with the bat as he stroked an unbeaten 116 off just 107 balls to take India home with more than 40 balls to spare.

The left-hander started off cautiously and kept rotating the strike, putting the occasional bad ball away to put on a 139 run partnership with Gautam Gambhir, who missed out on a well deserved century by just 10 runs. Yuvraj Singh, who came to the crease following the dismissal of Gambhir, ensured that India reached the target comfortably without losing any more wickets.

#3. Virender Sehwag 119 vs Pakistan, 2008

Virender Sehwag’s fearless knock of 119 against Pakistan in the 2008 Asia Cup saw India make light work of a difficult target of 300 to advance into the next round. Despite losing his opening partner Gautam Gambhir early on, Sehwag was in no way afraid to play his natural game as he smashed a wayward Pakistan bowling attack all over the park to bring up a well deserved century.

The Pakistan bowling attack, which suffered a big blow early on in the Indian innings after Umar Gul had to leave the field owing to a rib muscle injury, after having bowled only 2.3 overs, did not seem to find any way to stop the flow of runs.

The right-hander stitched a partnership of 184 with Suresh Raina before the latter’s innings ended with India needing just 90 runs in 23 overs. Sehwag scored 119 from just 95 balls before being dismissed with the match already in India’s pocket. The chase was finished off by MS Dhoni, who remained unbeaten on 26 to see India through to the next stage of the tournament.

#2. Virat Kohli 136 vs Bangladesh, 2014

Virat Kohli scored a ton against Bangladesh in Asia Cup

Virat Kohli’s 136 against Bangladesh at Fatullah in the 2014 Asia Cup chasing a healthy target of 280 was a typical example of his masterclass in batting when it comes to chasing stiff targets.

Virat Kohli, who walked in to bat with India in a spot of bother having lost both their openers, judged the situation perfectly and kept the scoreboard ticking, running hard between the wickets and pouncing on every scoring opportunity that came his way.

Kohli stitched a crucial 213 run partnership with Ajinkya Rahane, who scored 73 from 83 balls and ensured throughout the partnership that Kohli enjoyed as much of the strike as possible.

The right-hander brought up his 19th ODI century and his 13th in a run chase, steering India excellently towards the target before being dismissed for 136 from 122 balls with only 13 runs required for the win. The victory was only a matter of time since then as India won the match comfortably in the end, beating the hosts by 6 wickets.

#1. Virat Kohli 183 vs Pakistan, 2012

Virat Kohli’s 183 against Pakistan in the 2012 Asia Cup, chasing a mammoth target of 330 is undoubtedly one of the greatest ODI innings of all time. Kohli, who came in to bat after India lost their star opener Gautam Gambhir in the second ball of their innings, put on a partnership of 133 for the second wicket with Sachin Tendulkar before the latter was dismissed for 52 and he went on to register his highest individual score in the ODI format.

A partnership of 172 runs between Kohli and Rohit Sharma completely ruled out any possibility of Pakistan making a comeback into the game. Kohli looked to be single-handedly taking India towards a memorable win against their arch-rivals before being dismissed for 183 from just 148 balls, with India needing only 12 runs for the victory.

Kohli’s heroics ensured that India won by 6 wickets with 13 balls to spare to help them stay alive in the tournament after a poor show in the opening game against Bangladesh.