Asia Cup 2018: Team of the group stages

The group stage of Asia Cup has finally concluded, after a number of shocks, thrills and upsets. After witnessing some riveting encounters over a course of 6 days, the action now shifts to the Super Four stage, with India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh reaching the round-robin stage.

Expanding to 6 teams for the first time, the debutant teams made a robust impact on the proceedings. While Afghanistan ousted five-time champions Sri Lanka and pipped Bangladesh to top Group B, Hong Kong held their heads high after they nearly upset defending champions India with a valiant effort.

While the teams advanced to the next round largely due to their coordination and balance in the units, some individual performances shone out, even from the teams that were eliminated. We hereby compile the best XI from the group stages of the tournament.

Openers

Shikhar Dhawan (India)

The southpaw stamped his authority in white ball cricket after a lacklustre outing in England. Shikhar Dhawan made a brisk hundred in India's opening fixture against Hong Kong, with his 127 being the highest score from both the sides. Gabbar was awarded Man of the Match for his enthralling knock.

In the game against Pakistan, he complemented Rohit Sharma quite well at the top of the order chasing a mediocre target and destroyed the hopes, if any, which the opposition had.

Nizakat Khan (Hong Kong)

The Hong Kong opener punched well above his weight, showing no signs of nerves or immaturity as he brought his team knocking on the doors of victory. He laid a strong foundation to the chase of 286 against India with an opening stand of 174 along with his captain, and was unfortunate to miss out on his century by 8 runs.

Khan could not make an impact in his opening game against Pakistan, but his heroics in the second game finds him a place in the XI.