Asia Cup 2023: India, PAK match moves to Reserve Day after heavy rain in Colombo

India will resume their innings at 147 for 2 in the 25th over against Pakistan in their Asia Cup Super 4 match on Monday after rain played spoilsport in Colombo on Sunday. Rain stopped play at 4.53 PM and after a heavy shower, the groundstaff tried to clear out two patches near the pitch; the umpires inspected the conditions and were not happy enough to resume play.

The third inspection was scheduled at 8.30 PM but moments before that, rain returned to hamper a potential restart.

The India vs Pakistan match was designated a reserve day but the weather forecast for Monday is not very promising either. As things stand now, it will be a 50-overs-a-side match unless there are further rain delays.

India's first match of the 2023 Asia Cup against Pakistan on September 2 had to be abandoned after the first innings. The India vs Nepal match was rain-truncated but a result was possible as Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill chased down a revised target.

On Sunday, Babar Azam won the toss and decided to field. Rohit Sharma started off with a six against Shaheen Shah Afridi before Shubman Gill stepped up and played a superb innings to bully the Pakistani pacers on a flat pitch.

Ironically, Gill was particularly harsh on Afridi who had dropped him off Naseem Shah. Gill, who has enjoyed a stunning year in ODIs this year, cut loose against Afridi as India raced off to a strong start. At the other end, Rohit Sharma struggled against Naseem Shah but did well to stay at



the wicket.

Shubman Gill hit some delightful shots against Shaheen Shah Afridi who was taken off the attack after three expensive overs in his first spell. The introduction of Faheem Ashraf and Haris Rauf stemmed the flow of runs but by then, both the India openers had settled in.

Babar Azam was rather defensive with his field placement and Shubman Gill was able to take advantage of some bizarre tactics. Rohit Sharma got into the groove soon after and Pakistan were under pressure against two top-quality opening batters.

Shadab Khan, the lone spinner to operate for Pakistan on Sunday, was also expensive. But he struck to get the wicket of Rohit Sharma for a 49-ball 56, ending a 121-run opening partnership. The arrival of Virat Kohli prompted Babar Azam to bring back the left-armed Shaheen Shah Afridi to the attack. And he struck immediately to remove Gill who made 58 off 52 balls.

After the Indian openers departed in successive overs, the focus shifted to Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, who swapped places with Shreyas Iyer minutes before the toss. Iyer, Rohit Sharma said, had a back spasm and would not be available for the crunch game.

Unlike the openers, Virat Kohli (8 not out off 16 balls) and KL Rahul (17 not out off 28 balls) were defensive and did not look to take too many risks, allowing Pakistan to crawl back into the game. As predicted, rain parts of Colombo and the players rushed back to the dressing-rooms as a long wait started for resumption of play.