Quarter-final 1: India vs Nepal
India defeated Nepal by 23 runs in the first quarterfinal of the Men’s Asian Games at the Pingfeng Campus Cricket ground in Hangzou. Even though Nepal gave India a run for their money in a valiant run pursuit, Yashasvi Jaiswal’s aggressive hundred enabled India to post a score of 200+.
After winning the toss and deciding to bat first, India got off to a blazing start, scoring at a rate of over 10 runs per over in the first ten overs. However, Ruturaj Gaikwad was the first to depart, having contributed only 25 runs to a stand of 103 with Jaiswal. Tilak Varma and Jitesh Sharma labored to score, and India suffered a momentary collapse of 4 wickets for 47 runs after Jaiswal was dismissed for a century off 49 balls. However, an explosive partnership between Shivam Dube and Rinku Singh of 52 runs off 22 deliveries propelled India to 202-4 in 20 overs.
On a compact ground, the Indian pacers Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan, and Shivam Dube labored to be parsimonious during the run chase, but they did manage to take five wickets for a whopping 112 runs in 11 overs. However, the damage was done by the spinners, as Ravi Bishnoi and Sai Kishore took four wickets for 49 runs in eight overs. Nepal was aggressive from the start but lost wickets frequently; as a consequence, they lived and died by the sword, falling 24 runs shy of their target and being eliminated from the tournament.
Brief Scores
India 202-4in 20 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 100, Rinku Singh 37*, Dipendra Singh 2-31) beat Nepal 179-9in 20 overs (Dipendra Singh Airee 32, Ravi Bishnoi 3-24, Avesh Khan 3-32) by 23 runs.
Quarter-final 2: Pakistan vs Hong Kong
Tuesday, October 3 at the Pingfeng Campus Cricket Field, Pakistan defeated Hong Kong convincingly in the second quarterfinal of the Men’s Asian Games. Aamer Jamal’s valiant batting effort and a typically merciless bowling performance led to the victory.
Hong Kong won the toss and elected to bowl first, which proved to be the correct decision, as Pakistan lost wickets quickly in the beginning of their innings. Ayush Shukla took the first two wickets, which belonged to Mirza Baig and Rohail Nazir, before the other bowlers joined in. Pakistan’s batsmen continued to score, but wickets fell at regular intervals, resulting in a score of 73-6. Then, however, interventions from Asif Ali, Arafat Minhas, and Aamer Kamal rescued Pakistan and propelled them to 160 runs all out in 20 overs. Aayush Shukla, with four wickets, was the best bowler.
In the run pursuit, Arafat Minhas took the initial wickets, putting Hong Kong behind early. Babar Hayat’s 29 gave Hong Kong a glimmer of hope, but an implosion from 54-2 to 63-8, 6 wickets for 9 runs, insured that Hong Kong could never recover from the rut and couldn’t even get close, resulting in a sub-hundred total. They ultimately lost by 58 runs and were eliminated from the competition, while Pakistan advanced to the semifinals.
Brief Scores
Pakistan 160 all-outin 20 overs (Aamer Jamal 41, Ayush Shukla 4-49, Mohammad Ghazanfar 3-26) beat Hong Kong 92 all-out in 18.5 overs (Babar Hayat 29, Khushdil Shah 3-13) by 68 runs
