19 September,2018 10:44 AM IST | Dubai | Santosh Suri
India captain Rohit Sharma
Minnows Hong Kong gave India a might scare in a Group A match of the Asia Cup at the Dubai stadium yesterday. After their bowlers had done a good job of restricting India to under 300, their openers Nizakat Khan and Anshuman Rath put on a record 174-run stand that sent shock waves in the Indian camp. But once wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav got rid of Rath and debutant Khaleel Ahmed accounted for Nizakat, their challenge wilted away.
After being put in to bat, the way centurion Shikhar Dhawan and Ambati Rayudu were batting, it seemed India would post a huge total. But after the duo departed, the Indian innings lost much of the momentum and managed 285 for seven in the end.
Hong Kong kept threatening the Indian total right till the end. Luckily for India, barring the openers the other Hong Kong batsmen were overawed by the task and cast their wickets away.
The win assured both India and Pakistan's passage into the Super Four, rendering today's match between the two of little consequence, and making their clash on September 23 crucial for their hopes of making the final.
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Hong Kong can take pride from their performance in this match, having run India close and also registering their best ever ODI partnership of 174, surpassing the 170-run stand between the same two batsmen, Nikazat and Rath against Scotland in Hong Kong.
For India, Dhawan registered his 14th ODI century and his 124-run stand with Ambati Rayudu laid the platform for a big total. But it was not to be. Rayudu collected a solid 60 from just 70 balls with three fours and two sixes. He was in no way lesser than Dhawan in stroke-play.
Dinesh Karthik and Kedar Jadhav also got a useful dig in the middle, but considering the quality of attack they were up against, they ought to have done better than getting 33 and unbeaten 28 respectively.
The flurry of wickets did not matter much in the end, but the Indian team will have to show much more grit and resolution in the match against Pakistan.
Also Read: Asia Cup 2018: Pakistan Gear Up To Take On India At 'Home'
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