‘Break India’s aura’, Shoaib Akhtar advises Pakistan before IND-PAK final:Fan tells Haris Rauf ‘India ko chorna nahi hai’; Salman Agha warns Men in Blue

The Pakistan skipper, Salman Ali Agha, has issued a warning to Indian team ahead of the historic, never-seen-before India-Pakistan Asia Cup final. After winning the virtual knockout against Bangladesh in Abu Dhabi on Thursday, Agha said that Men in Green are ‘looking to beat’ India in the final. ‘Good enough to beat anyone’- Agha warns India ahead of T20 Asia Cup final The Pakistan team showed an excellent display of batting and bowling under pressure against Bangladesh in the virtual semifinal on 25 September. Despite scoring just 135 runs with flashy knocks from lower-order batters, Pakistan bowlers Haris Rauf and Shaheen Afridi broke the Bangla Tigers’ back in the powerplay, scalping three wickets. Ultimately, Bangladesh could only score 124 runs. Excited by his team’s performance under pressure, Agha confidently claimed about playing India in the final in the press conference, We are really settled. We are a good enough team to beat anyone. We are excited and we will be looking to beat them in the final. At one end, it is Agha’s fiery statement on facing India in the final; on the other hand, there is Pakistan’s head coach, Mike Hesson, who has given a composed and befitting reply to the query around his clash with PAK’s arch-rival for the third time in the Asia Cup. ‘Play our best when it counts’- Mike Hesson During the post-match press conference on Thursday after beating Bangladesh, Mike Hesson responded to a question regarding Sunday clash vs India, We know that we played on the 14th. We played on the 21st. But really, the only match that really counts is the one at the end. And that will be our focus. Trying to play our best game when it counts. Notably, India had defeated Pakistan in the first group stage clash on 14 September by beating Pakistan by 7 wickets. Then India faced Pakistan again on another Sunday, but for a Super 4 clash on 21 September. This time, Pakistan did put up a fight on the batting end, but due to Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill’s power-packed batting in the powerplay, the match steered away from the PAK team. Eventually, India won the game by 6 wickets, chasing down the total of 172 runs in 18.5 overs. Although after winning against Bangladesh, Pakistan’s head coach and skipper feel confident despite repeated losses against India, former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar has given crucial advice to Men in Green ahead of the T20 Asia Cup final vs India. Shoaib Akhtar says, ‘Unka aura jo bana hua hai, tod ke andar jaayein’ Referencing to PAK’s fight against Bangladesh on Thursday, Shoaib Akhtar advised Men in Green in the ‘Game On Hai’ show on PTV Sports, “India ka aura jo bana hua hai, woh todh kar andar jaye. Usi attitude ke saath jaayein jaisa attitude aaj tha. Take the mound, aa jaao.” Further adding to his advice, former Pakistan cricketer said, “Please remember we don’t need to go in thinking we have to bowl 20 overs. No! We need to get them out. When you go out to get them out, even India will realise they have to fight to score runs and that they won’t get any free runs.” He requested the Pakistan team to trust in Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf and just forget that it is the number 1 team on the other end. With sentiments soaring high in Pakistan after repetitive losses and scheduled historic title clash on 28 September, a Pakistani fan made a desperate plea to Haris Rauf that has gone viral on social media. ‘India ko chhorna nahin hai!!’- PAK fan pleads Haris Rauf While Haris Rauf was visiting fans and shaking hands with them after securing place in Asia Cup final, a diehard fan made a desperate plea to the pacer, a video clip of which is going viral on social platforms. Badla lena hai. India ko chhorna nahin hai. Khuda ka vasta!!! After PAK fans’ vigorous request, Rauf laughed off a bit, consoled the fan, and left the scene without reacting any further. With all-round tension on and off the field, including the protest going on between the Pakistan Cricket Board(PCB) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India(BCCI) in ICC, it will be interesting to watch how team India battles its own woes including fielding and batting combo errors, while facing a side that has continuously evolved throughout the Asian tournament.