Muscat: At the Emerging Teams Asia Cup 2024 in Oman, a new comer team Afghanistan A defeated India A in the semifinals by 20 runs. It was a tough target for India A but they fell short by 20 runs in a match where R. Singh scored 64 runs. This kind of result indicate that both last year’s finalists, India A and Pakistan Shaheens, did managed to reach only the semifinals, as Sri Lanka A duly sent the Pakistan Shaheens packing to their homes after a convincing 7 wickets loss in the first semifinal.
Afghanistan A ’ s Explosive Opening Partnership
Afghanistan A, who batted for the first time, posted a tournament’s highest when their openers, Sadiqullah Atal and Zubaid Akbari went on the rampage immediately. They collected 61 runs in the power play and spread past 100 in the twelfth over which groomed the Afghanistan team well. This goes to the record when in the 13th over bowled by India’s experienced leg-spinner Rahul Chahar the two Afghan openers scored 31 runs off the over including four sixes. To the extend of the pressure, Chahar bowled two no balls giving Afghanistan the boost they needed.
The two openers took the field and set up a huge total of 137 runs before Akbari was bowled out at 64, Atal stormed to the crease and dominated with aastic 83. Rasikh Salam Dar got two wickets and broke the back of Afghanistan but Karim Janat, the experienced all rounder, smashed 41 from 20 balls to take Afghanistan A to a impressive 206. This was the first 200-plus total for any side in the tournament.
But, the great performance in the first innings were let down by the first string senior team top order of India A.
Seeking 207, India A needed a power packed show from its openers – Prabhsimran Singh (19) and Abhishek Sharma (7), but Afghanistan bowlers had other permutation planned. Sharma left in the third over, while Singh, who scored a few boundaries, went in the fifth. Tilak Varma, the young captain of the Indian team, made only 16 runs which however aggravated the Indian team position. Some useful cameos from Ayush Badoni, 31 and Nehal Wadhera, 20 ensured some gratitude in the middle, but both fell by the 13th over, making the India A team struggle at 100 runs.
The particular heroics of Raman Deep Singh disappoint
Falling at five wickets and the rate building up Raman Deep Singh brought the base with him with a hard hitting 26 ball fifty. In a display of raw muscles only days away from the IPL retention period, Raman Deep put together an impressive power play with Nishant Sindhu (23) and the two forged a good partnership of 68 off the last 31 balls. But sadly the match turned on its head when Sindhu was run-out which ended the Indian A’s fighting chance of a comeback. India A were all out 20 runs shy of the Afghan total at 186.
Afghanistan A moved into the final in impressive style against South Africa A and will now face Sri Lanka A while India A will surely rue the one chanced to put them out of their otherwise fine tournament.