Asia Cup- India vs Pakistan: Five things we learned from the match

The most anticipated clash between the two neighbors, India and Pakistan, took place today at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in the UAE, and ended up in a one-sided victory for the Indian team. While the bout was inconsequential for the qualification purpose, it was a prestigious affair, nevertheless.

Opting to bat first, Pakistan lost both their openers within the first five overs as Bhuvneshwar Kumar struck twice. Babar Azam and Shoaib Malik tried salvaging the team situation but Kuldeep Yadav altered the course of the game with his wrist-spin magic.

The rest of the Pakistani batting unit had no answers to the low-trajectory spin of Kedar Jadhav and the remaining Indian bowling attack combined to skittle Pakistan for only 162 all out. Kumar and Jadhav picked three wickets each.

India's openers started the chase with caution and soon stepped up the run-rate to gain a comfortable position. Captain Rohit Sharma scored a scintillating fifty while Shikhar Dhawan played a supporting hand. Ambati Rayudu and Dinesh Karthik then steered India to an eight-wicket win. Here are five things we learned from the marquee clash.

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#1 Pakistan’s over-reliance on their openers

In the last twelve months, Pakistan’s highest run-getter has been opener Fakhar Zaman. He has amassed 837 runs in 16 matches at an astounding batting average of 69.75. His opening partner Imam-ul-Haq is the third on the list with an equally impressive average of 66.22 in 11 matches.

At the top, the pair of Zaman and ul-Haq has produced four opening partnerships exceeding 100 runs, one of which is gigantic 304 run stand against Zimbabwe earlier this year. Apart from Babar Azam at number three, no other Pakistani batsman has managed consistency, hence exerting pressure on the top-order.

In today’s encounter against India, Pakistan lost both their openers to Bhuvneshwar Kumar within first five overs. The poor start dented Pakistan’s plans, and the frequent loss of wickets carried them as far as 162 runs only. The green nation will need its middle-order to stand up and deliver.

#2 Kedar Jadhav - The Sixth Bowler

The Indian team struggled in the past to find a bowling option beyond its top five bowlers. None of the batsmen possessed the skills to stifle opposition’s batting run-rate when regular bowlers were not available. Today, however, with his spell of 3/23 in nine overs against Pakistan, Kedar Jadhav has shown potential to fulfill the promise.

With Hardik Pandya out of the action with his acute back injury, Indian captain Rohit Sharma needed Jadhav to step up and maintain the pressure on Pakistan batting lineup. The 33-year old responded in sterling fashion and ended up picking three wickets, which included Pakistani captain Sarfaraz Ahmed, Asif Ali and the ace all-rounder, Shadab Khan.

Jadhav’s unique low-arm spin bowling action has fetched him 19 ODI wickets, the list of dismissed batsmen includes Steve Smith, David Warner, Kane Williamson, Mushfiqur Rahim, Tamim Iqbal, and many others. The middle-order batsman has not been able to cement his place for his batting endeavors, but he may become an integral part of the Indian team with his spin magic.

#3 Sarfaraz Ahmed is not worthy to bat at number five for Pakistan

After two early wickets, Babar Azam and Shoaib Malik stabilized the Pakistani innings. The duo added 82 runs for the third wicket and almost guided the team back on track. Kuldeep Yadav then bamboozled Babar Azam, and the dismissal brought Pakistani captain Sarfaraz Ahmed to the crease.

Playing alongside heavily experienced batsman Shoaib Malik, Ahmed had to build another steady partnership which could have taken Pakistan to a stage where they could think of launching an attack. Instead, the captain batting on six from 11 balls went for a heave off the bowling Kedar Jadhav, only to be caught splendidly by Manish Pandey on the boundary.

The Pakistani captain has struggled lately with the bat. Since his knock of 61 not out against Sri Lanka in the Champions Trophy 2017, Sarfaraz Ahmed has recorded six single-digit scores in his ten outings. He has scored only 110 runs in his last ten knocks which includes only one half-century. It is time for Pakistan to find a reliable number five.

#4 Shikhar Dhawan’s white-ball form is amazing

While Shikhar Dhawan may have failed as an opener in the testing conditions of England in whites, his white-ball form has not deserted him. Since Sri Lanka ODI series last year in December at home, Dhawan has scored 784 runs in 14 matches with an extraordinary batting average of 65.33 with three centuries and three half-centuries. These 14 matches have been played in four different nations.

Coming into the Asia Cup, Shikhar Dhawan was playing his first ODI in UAE as he geared up to take on Hong Kong yesterday in the opening encounter. Playing fluently as ever, the Delhi left-hander cruised to his 14th ODI century with a scintillating knock of 126 in the sapping heat. He was rightly adjudged as Man of the match.

Today, once again Dhawan proved his worth. In process of scoring 46 at the top, the opener ensured that the Pakistan bowlers did not taste early blood. He kept his wicket intact while scoring regular boundaries which did not allow the pressure to mount. Dhawan’s form will be crucial in India’s Asia Cup campaign.

#5 Bhuvneshwar Kumar is a force to be reckoned with

India survived a major scare in their opening match of the Asia Cup 2018 against Hong Kong as they sneaked away with a 26-run victory. One of the talking points from the match was the ineffective bowling of Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Prior to the Asia Cup, Bhuvneshwar had bowled 25 overs across four ODIs and had ended up wicketless in each of the outings. Playing against a lowly ranked side of Hong Kong, Bhuvi was supposed to work his way back in the form and pick a few wickets. His returns at the end of the day were 50/0 from nine overs.

Today, we witnessed a determined Bhuvneshwar against Pakistan. With Jasprit Bumrah building pressure on the Pakistani batting lineup from one end, Bhuvi struck gold in consecutive overs and removed both the openers. He later grabbed his third wicket and ended with excellent bowling figures of 7-1-15-3.