DUBAI: Under fire after their twin thrashings at the hands of India in the ongoing Asia Cup, Pakistan proved they were good enough to make it to the tournament’s final when they edged Bangladesh by 11 runs in their last Super Four outing on Thursday and all their matters now for the side are the title honours.

For the national side’s head coach Mike Hesson, whose credentials were questioned after India outplayed them in the group-stage and Super Four clashes, Pakistan deserved to be in the final after beating all of their opponents through the course of the tournament apart from the archrivals.

And it’s India only, who’ll be in Pakistan’s way to their Asia Cup title ambition come Sunday.

“We’ve deserved this opportunity, and now it’s up to us to make the most of it,” Hesson told reporters on Thursday night. “All the games before this were about getting into a position to win the trophy.

“We know that the only match that really counts is the final, and that’s our focus, to play our best game when it matters.”

Coming into the Asia Cup after a tri-nation series victory, Pakistan somewhat comfortably beat Oman and hosts United Arab Emirates, with their seven-wicket loss against India coming in between the two fixtures.

Pakistan’s Super Four stage, meanwhile, started with a six-wicket loss against Suryakumar Yadav’s men — the national side performing slightly better with the bat this time — before they went on to edge Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

The two losses seem to have given Pakistan enough information to work with as they prepare for the final — the first time the teams from the neighbouring countries meet in the Asia Cup 41-year history.

“The way we played against India in the last match was a huge step up from the first game,” Hesson noted. “In the first one, we were a bit passive and allowed India to control the game. But in the last match, we had the game by the scruff of the neck for long periods, and it took an exceptional innings from Abhishek Sharma to take it away from us.

“Outside of that, we were pretty good. It was mainly the power play with the ball. We have to be good enough to put them under pressure for longer periods. We did it for about 10 overs with the bat and after the powerplay with the ball, but we need to sustain it longer. There’s a reason they’re rated the top side in the world. That’ll be our challenge.”

And the challenge will be huge, given how Pakistan struggled with the bat against Bangladesh. They were reeling at 46-4 at the end of the powerplay before a fightback of sorts dragged them to 135-8.

Hesson admitted Pakistan were yet to “play the perfect game”.

“Look, I think whenever you get to different phases of the tournament, your opposition often doesn’t allow you to play the perfect game, and we were far from perfect,” the coach observed. “We realized that in the first 10 overs.

“… but the fact we can win games from that position just shows the character in the group. Today, whenever we tried to play aggressively, we got out before getting used to the pitch. These are lessons, and as pitches tire, discipline becomes even more important.”

Hesson, however, was wary that the final against India will have a lot to do with the players’ mindsets.

“We’ve been talking about focusing on the present and not getting ahead of ourselves,” he said. “The boys always aimed to be in this final, and we had to play good cricket to get here.

“We’ve beaten teams we hadn’t beaten in a long time, and we won the tri-series before this. There’s confidence in the group, and wins like today — when everyone writes you off 10 overs in — only build that confidence further.”

Published in Dawn, September 27th, 2025