Asia Cup: Pakistan opt to bat against Oman in Dubai

Dubai, Sep 12 Pakistan have won the toss and opted to bat against Oman in their Group A opening match of the Asia Cup at Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Friday.

Pakistan captain Salman Agha backed his side’s combination to post an “above par total” while batting first.

“We are going to bat first. It looks like a good pitch and we want to put the scoreboard pressure. We have been playing good cricket for the last 2-3 months, we have been playing together from February, and the team is coming together, we want to continue that. We have three proper spinners and three all-rounders. When we bat first we want to put above par totals and when bowling first we want to restrict the opposition to chaseable totals,” he said the toss.

Oman captain Jatinder Singh said, “We would have batted first. It is a historic moment for us to come and rub shoulders with the Asian giants. (on putting the team together) It was a challenge six months ago, but the boys were so hungry to perform and grab the opportunity. It is a spin-oriented side.”

As per the pitch report, “Same pitch as the other day when India played the UAE. It looks hard and has been rolled in nicely, although it looks a little drier, says Bazid Khan. If the pacers bend their back, they could get some assistance and bounce. The stats suggest bowling first after winning the toss, trying to replicate what India did on Wednesday.”

Playing XIs

Oman: Jatinder Singh(c), Aamir Kaleem, Hammad Mirza, Vinayak Shukla(w), Shah Faisal, Hassnain Shah, Mohammad Nadeem, Zikria Islam, Sufyan Mehmood, Shakeel Ahmed, Samay Shrivastava.

Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Haris(w), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha(c), Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Abrar Ahmed.

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