Asia Cup 2022: 3 reasons why Hong Kong can surprise Pakistan

Pakistan will take on Hong Kong in the sixth Match of Asia Cup 2022, which is a do-or-die match for both Group A sides at Sharjah.

As far as numbers are concerned, Hong Kong and Pakistan have faced each other in three matches in Asia Cup tournaments.

Pakistan have dominated all three games and if their form on paper is anything to go by, they are overwhelming favorites to win their fourth match against Hong Kong as well.

However, Hong Kong have been playing with a lot of freedom and spirit. They made it to the main round after knocking out UAE in the qualifiers. They were good with the bat against India as well and hence, Pakistan cannot take them lightly.

We take a look at three reasons why Hong Kong can surprise Pakistan in this Asia Cup match:

#3 Injury concerns for Pakistan

Naseem Shah might not play in the all-important encounter

Prior to the tournament, Pakistan were already hampered by injuries to Shaheen Afridi and Mohammad Wasim. In their clash against India, their other fast bowlers Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf struggled with their fitness as well.

There is a question mark over Naseem Shah's fitness and this could once again affect their bowling stocks.

The associate side showed against India that their openers love to get the ball rolling in the powerplay and in the absence of Naseem Shah, they will have one less bowler to contend with.

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#2 Exploit Pakistan's middle order

Will Babar be able to get off the blocks quickly?

Pakistan play with a set template in T20Is. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan start conservatively, a template that India followed against Hong Kong on Wednesday. However, after this conservative start, India had Suryakumar Yadav coming out firing on all cylinders.

Pakistan have plenty of problems in the middle order. Their batting is hugely dependent on their openers and if the start is slow, there will be pressure on the middle order to accelerate.

Hong Kong have decent bowlers and if they can stick to their plans and be sharp in the field, they can squeeze Pakistan and try to restrict their scoring rate.

As far as numbers are concerned, the top three are responsible for roughly two-thirds - 67.5% - of Pakistan's runs in T20Is since the 2021 World Cup.

One of the big reasons behind Babar and Rizwan's conservative approach at the top of the order could be their lack of confidence in the middle order.

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#1 Pressure on Pakistan

Babar Hayat will be key to his side's chances

It is a match between a full member and an associate nation. It is a clash between one of the most prolific sides in T20Is and a side that is full of players who earn their livelihood with other day jobs.

This is the shortest format and Hong Kong, who have nothing to lose, will fancy their chances of knocking out Pakistan. They showed great promise against India.

Babar Hayat, Zeeshan Ali and Scott McKechnie were superb with their big hits and with the ball, Ayush Shukla, Ehsan Khan and Yasim Murtaza were extremely frugal as they conceded 82 runs in their 12 combined overs.

The pitch will be slower in Sharjah and these bowlers will pose a big challenge to the Pakistan batting order and we could well see an upset.