Asia Cup 2018: Ambati Rayudu's direct hit to dismiss Shoaib Malik leaves Pakistan reeling

Malik's wicket was a huge blow to Pakistan.

Published - 19 Sept 2018, 19:37 IST | Updated - 19 Sept 2018, 19:37 IST

2 Min Read

India are bossing the ongoing encounter against their arch-rivals. It seems that they saved all the energy to give their best effort today. The way the Men in Blue fared against Hong Kong the other day, a lot of questions were raised on the team. But all the bowlers and the fielders have been exceptional so far and they have sent seven Pakistani back to the hut and they have only a few over 100 runs on the board.

The pressure was on Pakistan right through and they needed Shoaib Malik to play until the end in order to post a significant total. After Sarfraz Ahmed’s wicket thanks to the acrobatics from Manish Pandey, Asif Ali came out to bat who is new to international cricket and was playing his first match against India. The pressure was telling on him and the youngster, in the process, was involved in a mix-up with his senior partner.

Malik doesn’t ground his bat

Kedar Jadhav had already bowled a decent spell and the 27th over of the innings was no different. With every dot ball, the pressure was increasing. The last ball of the over was pushed into the off-side by Asif Ali and Malik wanted a quick single. He was off his screws soon and then was sent back a tad late by his partner.

In the meantime, Ambati Rayudu got rid of the ball very quickly and sensed an opportunity to run Malik out. He threw the ball towards the non-striker’s end and it hit the woodwork. Malik, who should’ve been safe as a house by then in the crease, was a bit lazy in plonking his bat which cost him his wicket.

He was looking good at 43 and was a vital cog for his team. The Men in Green will need a sensational effort from the tail-enders now to make a comeback in the contest.