AL AMARAT: Sufiyan Muqeem returned brilliant bowling figures of 2/28 and helped Pakistan Shaheens restrict India A to 183/8 in the fourth match of the ACC Men’s T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup 2024 at Al Amerat Cricket Ground on Saturday.
Abhishek Sharma and Prabhsimran Singh gave India A a flamboyant start after Tilak Verma opted to bat first.
The openers decimated Pakistan Shaheens’ bowlers in the batting powerplay, the highlight of which was when they smashed Abbas Afridi for 25 runs in the sixth over.
The solid start had set the tone for India A to amass a massive total but Sufiyan Muqeem, introduced after the batting powerplay, struck on the first delivery of his spell to mark Pakistan Shaheens’ comeback.
The left-arm spinner dismissed Abhishek, supported by a sensational diving catch by Qasim Akram inside the circle. Abhishek scored 35 off 22 deliveries, laced up five fours and two sixes.
Prabhsimran followed suit in the next over, falling victim to Arafat Minhas, after scoring a quickfire 36 off 19 balls, hitting three fours and as many sixes in the process.
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The back-to-back dismissals halted the flow of runs for India A as Nehal Wadhera (25) and skipper Tilak Verma batted cautiously amid their 38-run partnership which spanned six overs.
India A then suffered another blow to their batting expedition when Ayush Badoni (2) was outclassed by Qasim Akram in the next over, resulting in them slipping to 120/4.
Verma then put together a one-sided 43-run partnership with Ramandeep Singh (17) before finally perishing in the penultimate over.
The India A captain remained the top-scorer for his side with a 35-ball 44, which included four boundaries including two sixes.
Pakistan Shaheens then struck thrice in quick succession but a last-ball six by Rasikh Salam lifted India A to a commendable total in the end.
Sufiyan Muqeem was the standout bowler for Pakistan Shaheens, picking up two wickets, while Mohammad Imran Jr, Zaman Khan, Arafat Minhas and Qasim Akram made one scalp apiece.
Notably, both Pakistan Shaheens and India A are playing their first match in the ongoing ACC Men’s T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup 2024.
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