Pakistan Secure Super โฃ4 Spot in Asia Cup after Defeating UAE Amidst Off-Field Drama
Dubai, September โ18,โ 2025 – Pakistan advanced to the โSuper 4 stageโ of the Asiaโ Cup after securing a 41-run victory over the UAE in a match overshadowed by controversy involving match referee Andy pycroft. The win, achieved despite a โขshaky โคbatting performance, sees Pakistan joinโ Indiaโ in the nextโ round of โฃthe tournament.
Pakistan posted a total of 146 for 9, anchored byโ Fakhar Zaman’s half-centuryโข (36 balls) โคand a late โฃflourish from Shaheen Shah Afridi (29 not out off 14 balls). Earlier, they struggled early, reaching 17 for โค2 within the first โfourโ overs. โคUAE’s Junaid Siddique claimed 4 for 18, while Simranjeet โคSingh took 3 for โข26.
Shaheen Afridi then turnedโ the tables with the ball, taking โ2 for 16 as โคUAE collapsed fromโ 85 โคfor 3 to 105 all out in 17.4 overs. Aryan Chopraโ top-scored for โthe UAE with โ35, contributing to a 48-run partnership withโค Dhruv Parashar. Abrar Ahmed also proved crucial,โข finishingโข with figures of 2 for 13, supported by Saim Ayub’s contribution ofโค 1 for 18. Haris โRauf โฃalso โคchipped in with โa wicket, breaking โฃthe Chopra-Parashar partnership.
The matchโ unfolded against a โฃbackdrop of โคreports regarding a potential boycott of the game by the Pakistan team following an โคincident โคinvolving Pycroft. While the details remain unclear, theโข issue appeared to be temporarily resolved,โ allowing โplay to commence after โฃaโ delay.
Pakistan’sโ victory comes with concerns regarding their batting form,โข but reaffirms the strength of their bowling attack. They will now face Indiaโค in a highly anticipated Super 4 encounter.
India will play Oman in their final group gameโค on Friday before facing Pakistan. In Group B, Sri Lanka will play Afghanistan on Thursday, with Afghanistan needing a win โto secure โขa Super 4 berthโค and eliminate Bangladesh.