Pakistan pacer Shahnawaz Dahani has been ruled out of Sunday's match against India after suffering a side strain. Dahani injured himself while bowling in the match against Hong Kong which Pakistan won by 155 runs.
"Shahnawaz Dahani will not be available for Sunday’s ACC T20 Asia Cup Super-4 match against India due to a suspected side strain. The injury happened while bowling in the match against Hong Kong in Sharjah on Friday," said PCB in a statement.
The statement further noted that Pakistan's medical team will assess Dahani's situation and will further decide his participation in the tournament.
As is the case with any suspected side strain injury, the medical team will monitor him for the next 48-72 hours, following which they will make decisions, including carrying out a scan and further participation in the tournament.
Performance vs India in 1st Match
Dahani executed some lusty blows against India towards the end and powered Pakistan to 147-10. With the ball in hand, Dahani gave away 29 runs in his quota of 4 overs.
Pakistan vs India - Round 2 - Can Babar & Co. Make it 1-1?
The famed top-order would be desperate for a course correction while the bowling attack could be rejigged as India aim for a 'Sunday Encore' against Pakistan in an Asia Cup 'Super 4s' clash.
If top-order's Powerplay philosophy is a problem, the inexperience of Avesh Khan at the death is no less a worry as the team management may need to revamp the bowling attack against a strong Pakistan side which is coming into the game after demolishing Hong Kong by more than 150 runs.
If Not Jadeja, Then Who?
With no Ravindra Jadeja available in this game, Axar Patel seems a straightaway replacement but the team combination does take a hit in the absence of Saurashtra all-rounder.
In the last game against Pakistan, head coach Rahul Dravid promoted Jadeja to number four to keep the left-right combination going in the top six as Rishabh Pant was dropped from the playing XI.
It remains to be seen if skipper Rohit Sharma and Dravid will take the gamble again on Sunday. But it won't be an exaggeration to say that when it comes to the requirement of having a pure left-hand batter in the top six, only the man from Roorkee can provide the solution.
Attacking No More?
Last Sunday, it was Hardik Pandya's one-man show that got India over the line in a thrilling last-over finish and Rohit would expect that intensity to be maintained in this game too.
However, the Indian team despite being a minefield of talent does have a soft underbelly and the top-order's cautious approach in the Powerplay overs is one of them.
Neither Virat Kohli nor Rohit looked comfortable against the Pakistani attack and as the pitch got slower their problems seemed to have compounded.
SKY Brilliance
It was Suryakumar Yadav's sheer brilliance that saved India from what was turning out to be an embarrassing batting display against minnows Hong Kong with an out-of-sync KL Rahul playing his slowest ever (36 off 39 balls) innings.
A pertinent question now arises if India will change their top order and add some firepower since it is now clear that the combination of Rahul, Rohit and Kohli isn't working well for the team.
To be fair to Rahul, he deserves a go at top order for one more time as he was dismissed by Naseem Shah in the very first ball he faced in Sunday's game.
But the think tank needs to spell it out clearly to Rahul that he needs to change his outlook of looking at the quantum of runs rather than the quality and impact it creates.
What's Up With Pakistan?
The Pakistan team, on its part, would also like to score more in the first 10 overs. Mohammed Rizwan and Babar Azam have had all the success while chasing but batting first hasn't exactly been the strong suit of the pair. Also, the slowness of the Dubai track does create a few problems for the batters. This raises another question of whether Avesh Khan and Arshdeep Singh can both feature in the playing eleven
While Axar's restrictive bowling is an option, Deepak Hooda as a batting all-rounder or Ravichandran Ashwin as a bowling all-rounder can be tried out. With two left-handers in Fakhar Zaman and Khushdil Shah in the top six, an off-spinner taking the ball away could prove to be a good proposition along with Bhuvneshwar and Hardik, who are bowling full tilt.
In all, another Super Sunday could well be on the cards as the two bitter neighbours get ready to lock horns.
We may as well get to see India vs Pakistan in the final of the Asia Cup, but if the match on Sunday turns out to be the last one in this tournament, then it will be the World Cup down-under, where we'll see both these teams battle it out.
Squads:
India: Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Deepak Hooda, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, R Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan.
Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Qadir, Mohammed Hasnain, Hasan Ali.
(Inputs PTI)
