"Goodwill gesture towards Nepal or poor performance by India?" - Twitter reacts as Nepal put on 65-run opening stand vs India in Asia Cup 2023
Nepal opening batters Kushal Bhurtel and Aasif Sheikh made the Indian bowlers work hard in the Asia Cup 2023 group stage encounter at the Pallekele International Stadium.
Bhurtel and Sheikh put on 65 runs in 9.5 overs to present a massive statement to those who believed that the contest would be a walkover for India.
Team India played their part in the success of the opening pair, by dropping three catches inside the first five overs itself. The batters settled into the game with each passing delivery and took on the bowlers in the latter half of the first powerplay.
Kushal Bhurtel played a wide array of strokes against the seamers, with Aasif Sheikh being the anchor in the partnership. It took a bowling change by Team India to break the partnership, with right-arm pacer Shardul Thakur dismissing Bhurtel.
Bhurtel scored 38 runs off 25 deliveries, while Aasif Sheikh is still unbeaten at the crease, patiently holding one end.
Fans praised the positive and brazen approach taken by the Nepal openers while India's bowling and fielding were criticized. Here are some of the reactions on Twitter:
India claw their way back into the contest with quick wickets
The first powerplay well and truly belonged to Nepal on the back of the sublime opening partnership. The Men in Blue's sloppy fielding has not helped by any means, but they are slowly working their way back into the match.
Nepal lost their second wicket in the 16th over after No.3 batter Bhim Sharki chopped one back onto the stumps off Ravindra Jadeja's bowling. Spin has been introduced from both ends in a bid to trigger a collapse.
At the time of writing, Nepal are 89/2 after 18 overs of play in the first innings of the contest.
Additionally, Rohit Sharma and company are missing the services of Jasprit Bumrah, who has returned home for the birth of his first child.
Earlier, the Men in Blue opted to bowl first after winning the toss to give their bowlers some solid game time. Rohit said during the toss:
"We are gonna bowl first. No particular reason. We batted in the last game. We want to see what the bowlers have in offer for us. I don't know about the weather. We just want to have the bowlers to have a game under the belt."
Will Nepal be able to prolong the momentum to give the opposition a serious scare? Let us know what you think.