Salman Agha’s Pakistan enter Super Four after UAE win, eye India clash in Asia Cup 2025. Pakistan, led by Salman Agha, booked their place in the Super Four stage of the Asia Cup 2025 with a 41-run win over the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The victory sets up another high-voltage clash against India on Sunday, September 21, in Dubai.
The qualification comes after Pakistan’s disappointing seven-wicket defeat to India on September 14, which was followed by the no-handshake controversy. With pressure mounting, Agha assured that his side is prepared to bounce back strongly.
Asia Cup: “We’re ready for any challenge. We just want to play good cricket, and if we continue the way we’ve been playing over the last few months, we’ll be good against any team,” Agha said at the post-match presentation.
In the earlier group-stage encounter against India, Pakistan managed only 127/9 in 20 overs after opting to bat first. Asia Cup, Kuldeep Yadav starred with three wickets, while Suryakumar Yadav (47*), Abhishek Sharma (31), and Tilak Varma (31) powered India to victory in just 15.5 overs with seven wickets to spare.
Asia Cup: “We haven’t played our best cricket yet.” – Salman Agha on Pakistan’s batting struggles
The skipper himself has found it tough to settle in the middle order, while opener Saim Ayub is still searching for his first run of the tournament after three consecutive ducks.
Asia Cup: “We got the job done, but we still need to improve our batting in the middle overs. That’s been a concern for a few games now. Even though we’re managing to reach around 150, if we play better through the middle, we can consistently push for 170–180 against any side. So yes, that’s the key area we must work on,” Salman explained.
All eyes will now be on Pakistan as they look to avenge their group-stage defeat to India when the two sides meet again in Dubai on Sunday.