Asia Cup 2023: Pakistan wins the toss, put India to bat first

In the Super Four match of the 2023 Asia Cup, Pakistan won the toss and elected to put India to bat first at the R.Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. Shreyas Iyer’s back spasms have forced India to make one forced change to their starting lineup, with KL Rahul taking his place. In the continental tournament, India and Pakistan have faced off against one another 18 times. In these games, Pakistan has triumphed on six occasions while India has won nine of them, with three of the matches ending with no clear winner.

India and Pakistan’s group stage match was abandoned due to rain, with each team earning one point. With the help of Hardik Pandya’s 87 and Ishan Kishan’s 82, India were bowled out for 266 in 48.5 overs, setting themselves a respectable target. Rain, however, decided to ruin things, and Pakistan was not even given a chance to face a ball. Despite the clouds, the weather is much brighter and more open with no significant indications of rain. Notably, it did not rain during the Super Four match between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka yesterday.

“We will bowl first. I think there is a bit of moisture, we need to use that. Always, India Pakistan is high intensity, but we will take it match to match. As a team, we are playing well, we are focused on this one. No changes,” said Pakistan captain Babar Azam after winning the toss.
“Looking to bat first. There will be a challenge upfront, but the way we guys batted last time around gives us confidence. Every game is important for us, but one thing at a time to focus on. (On rain delays) That’s the nature of the sport, it gave us good time to prepare and now we’ll look to play well. Two changes – Bumrah is back and one forced change, Shreyas Iyer just got a back spasm so KL Rahul comes in for him,” said India captain Rohit Sharma after the toss.