ABU DHABI: Pakistan pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi has declared that his team will reach the Asia Cup final and can beat India if the arch-rivals clash again.

Pakistan kept their campaign alive with a five-wicket win over Sri Lanka in a Super Four clash in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, India beat Bangladesh by 41 runs in their Super Four game in Dubai to seal their place in the Sept 28 final. As a result, the Super Four match between Pakistan and Bangladesh on Thursday becomes a virtual semi-final.

India and Pakistan have met twice in this edition of the regional competition but the neighbours have never played against each other in an Asia Cup final.

The regional tournament, played this time in the United Arab Emirates under the Twenty20 format, started in 1984 and this is its 17th edition.

India are defending champions and beat Pakistan in both previous matches of the ongoing edition, but Shaheen was in bullish mood after taking three wickets for 28 against Sri Lanka.

“They have still not reached the final, when they do, then we will see them,” said Shaheen about Suryakumar Yadav-led India.

“We are here to win the cup, whichever team come in the final we are ready to beat them.”

When asked to comment whether Pakistan pacers had been struggling for consistency for the past couple of years, Shaheen had his own view on the subject.

“Regarding our fast bowlers struggling, I don’t think that’s the case. In T20 cricket, if you get good wickets, batsmen have a free license to attack. As fast bowlers, we need to bring variations to our bowling, and we’re working on improving that,” the left-arm pacer said.

Replying to a question regarding his show in the Asia Cup so far, Shaheen, who has exhibited his hitting ability in this Asia Cup, said that his job was to give his best for Pakistan.

“As the matches have progressed, my job is to perform in whatever role I’m given —batting, fielding, or bowling. I give my 100% because that’s my aim every time I play, whether I’m unwell or injured. My job is to keep the team’s morale high and play with energy,” he said.

On whether the unusual on-field moves by his team-mates including paceman Haris Rauf and opener Sahibzada Farhan during the last game against India which was criticised by some quarters would inculcate aggression in the Pakistan team, Shaheen said the Green-shirts would play their game regardless of the perceptions others may have.

“Look, our job is to play cricket. Honestly, we don’t get into what others think. Everyone has their own perspective and can think what they want. Our job is to play cricket. We won the tri-nation series, and we’re here to win the Asia Cup. Inshallah, the whole team is working hard to bring joy to Pakistan,” he said.

On whether out-of-form players like Saim Ayub and wicket-keeper/batter Mohammad Haris should now be dropped from the playing eleven, Shaheen said that every player had their own utility.

“They’re our players too. Haris scored a hundred against Bangladesh in Lahore [earlier this year]. It’s not that they can’t bat or perform.

“Saim may not bat well sometimes, but he contributes with [spin] bowling or fielding. Even those on the bench aren’t bad. Everyone works hard and gives 100% when they get a chance, like Hussain [Talat], who won man-of-the-match award [in the game against Sri Lanka],” he said.

On being asked to comment on Suryakumar’s recent statement in which the skipper said that there was no India-Pakistan rivalry anymore, Shaheen gave his own view

“That’s his opinion. They haven’t reached the final yet. When they do, we’ll see. Our job is to win the Asia Cup, and we’ll give our all for it.”

The pacer said that Pakistan needed to play well to beat Bangladesh on Thursday.

“Bangladesh are a good team and have played well recently [in T20s]. When you play such teams, you need to land the first punch and not give them opportunities. We need to play well in batting, bowling, and fielding,” he stated.

‘MIDDLE-ORDER BATTING TOUGHEST JOB’

Meanwhile, Pakistan all-rounder Hussain Talat said that batting in middle-order was the most difficult task.

“I think batting in the middle order is the toughest job because you need to play all types of cricket, and if it’s tough, you should get more chances. Also, we now have very few middle-order batters in Pakistan who can play all kinds of cricket — maybe four or five at most. Even they don’t always want to take on this role,” left-handed Hussain told reporters after striking a 30-ball 32 not out in Pakistan’s victory over Sri Lanka.

Commenting on his comeback after remaining in and out of the national team since 2019, Hussain said that he kept doing the hard work.

“When I started playing [for the national team] in 2019, my performance during the first one and a half years was quite good. However, I was dropped after the 2019 World Cup following a change in the [team] management. Then I played a few games in 2021 before being dropped again. During this time, I kept working hard [to make a return] in domestic cricket which was not easy,” the all-rounder recalled.

While underlining that Pakistan had several bowling options, Hussain said that he had worked on his bowling.

“I’m a batting all-rounder, so I only get bowling chances occasionally. We have many options including Saim, Salman, [Mohammad] Nawaz and Faheem [Ashraf]. I’ve been working on my bowling with the coach for a long time since joining the team. Alhamdulillah, it paid off today,” the medium-pacer, who picked up two important wickets for 18 runs in three overs against Sri Lanka, said.

Hussain sounded upbeat ahead of Pakistan’s game against Bangladesh.“We’re very hopeful. The atmosphere in the camp is great, and we’ve been playing together since Bangladesh came to Pakistan [earlier this year]. The good thing about this group is that the players are being backed [by the team management] who are getting consistent chances,” he stated.

Published in Dawn, September 25th, 2025