Asia Cup 2022: 3 Indian players who flopped against Hong Kong
Team India vanquished Hong Kong by 40 runs at the Dubai International Stadium on Wednesday, August 31 to sail into the Super 4 of the 2022 Asia Cup.
Suryakumar Yadav was the star of the show for India as he smashed an unbeaten 68 off just 26 balls, a knock studded with six fours and six sixes. He was ably supported by Virat Kohli, who notched up an unbeaten fifty of his own. In the second innings, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ravindra Jadeja and Yuzvendra Chahal bowled tidy spells.
However, a few others couldn't come up with the goods. Here are three players who failed to deliver in India's Asia Cup clash against Hong Kong.
#3 Arshdeep Singh
Arshdeep Singh is fast becoming one of India's key players in T20I cricket, with his left-arm angle, ability to swing the ball both ways and rare prowess at the death. However, the youngster had a disappointing game against Hong Kong.
Arshdeep started decently, scalping the wicket of Yasim Murtaza off the last ball of his first over after conceding a couple of boundaries. But things unraveled soon after. Bowling the final over of the powerplay, the left-armer overstepped twice and was dispatched to the boundary three times.
Arshdeep was hit for three more fours over his next two overs as he finished with figures of 1/44. He couldn't hit the yorker as often as he usually does, sending down overpitched deliveries and full-tosses that the Hong Kong batters didn't have many problems dealing with.
The performance could be labeled a minor blip, though, since Arshdeep is undoubtedly a quality fast bowler who has a massive role to play in India's immediate future.
#2 KL Rahul
On the back of a first-ball duck against Pakistan, KL Rahul needed to deliver against Hong Kong. But with his place in the side under question, the Indian opener put up a shoddy display, finishing on 36 off 39 balls and sucking the momentum out of the innings.
Rahul played only one attacking shot in the first six overs - a six off a free-hit. He ended the powerplay on 16 off 20 and barely switched gears thereon. The 30-year-old was content to rotate strike even off deliveries that were in the slot, an issue that has become all too prevalent over the last few years for the batter.
India might need to break up their current top three since Rahul doesn't seem to have bought into the team's new attacking philosophy.
#1 Avesh Khan
Another player who failed to deliver against Pakistan, Avesh Khan saw his poor run of form continue against Hong Kong. The pacer was thrashed for five fours and four sixes in his four-over spell as he finished with unflattering figures of 1/53. His wicket of Aizaz Khan was scant consolation as the Hong Kong batters sent his deliveries to all corners of the Dubai International Stadium.
Avesh's consistency was sorely lacking on Wednesday. He provided width on several occasions and served up a plethora of deliveries right in the slot. The 25-year-old even dished out a few freebies on the pads, with the Hong Kong batters clearly targeting the weak link in the Indian attack.
Avesh's form has fallen off a cliff of late, and India might need to consider a few changes in personnel in the lead-up to the T20 World Cup.