India started their Asia Cup journey in style, beating the United Arab Emirates by nine wickets in Dubai. United Arab Emirates coach Lalchand Rajput praised India’s powerful bowling attack and admitted that his players were “nervous” facing such big names.
The United Arab Emirates were bowled out for just 57 runs in 13.1 overs. Rajput said his team found it very hard to play against India’s world-class bowlers.
“They never face bowlers like this. They were overawed by big names. World champions will crush teams. It was good till the powerplay, but once spinners came, everything changed,” he said.
Kuldeep’s big return
Kuldeep Yadav led a truly destructive showing by India in Dubai to kick off their Asia Cup campaign, registering a record-breaking win by chasing down 57 inside only 4.3 overs against the UAE. It was Indian domination from the word go, as Jasprit Bumrah’s perfect toe-crushing yorker got things going – but it was the ninth over bowled by Kuldeep that saw the left-arm leg-spinner take three wickets. Kuldeep Yadav was the star of the match, taking 4 wickets for just 7 runs. In one over, he picked up three wickets and completely broke the United Arab Emirates batting. Shivam Dube also bowled well with 3 for 4, while Varun Chakaravarthy, Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah took one wicket each. India then chased the target in only 4.3 overs, with Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill finishing the job easily.
Rajput pointed out that India’s bench strength is scary. He noted that Arshdeep Singh, India’s top T20 wicket-taker, did not even get a chance to play.
“If Arshdeep can’t make it to the eleven, it shows how strong the team is,” Rajput said.
With Pakistan coming up on Sunday, this big win shows India are ready to dominate the Asia Cup.
