Pakistan ‘Ready for Any Challenge,’ Says Salman After Beating UAE

Sports Desk

India’s Suryakumar Yadav and Pakistan’s Salman Agha during the toss during the Asia Cup cricket match at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on September 14, 2025. Photo: Reuters Pakistan captain Salman Agha said his team is ready to face India in the next round of the Asia Cup. The bitter rivalry between the two arch-rivals over a handshake in last week’s group-stage match had caused a stir.

Pakistan defeated the United Arab Emirates in their final Group A match on Wednesday to advance to the Super Four stage. They will also play two teams from Group B in a round-robin format in the Super Four. For the latest news, follow The Daily Star’s Google News channel. India and Pakistan have not played bilateral cricket since 2013 and they only play each other in multi-team tournaments. “We are ready, we are ready for any challenge,” said Salman after the 41-run win over the UAE.

“We just want to play good cricket. If we can play good cricket like we have in the last few months, I think we will do well against any team.” Despite Fakhar Zaman’s 50, Pakistan’s top order was disappointing against the UAE’s mediocre bowling attack. Opener Saim Ayub was dismissed for a duck for the third time in a row in the tournament. Salman admitted that they need to improve their batting.

“We have done the job, but we still need to improve our batting in the middle order,” Salman said. “It is a concern and something we need to work on.” India comfortably defeated Pakistan by seven wickets last weekend in the first cricket match since the four-day military confrontation between the nuclear-armed neighbours in May. The match ended without any untoward incident, although there was no handshake between players during the toss or at the end of the match.

India captain Suryakumar Yadav dedicated their victory to the country’s armed forces. The Pakistan Cricket Board has accused match referee Andy Pycroft of “violation of rules” and demanded his immediate removal and considered pulling out of the tournament before Wednesday’s match. If both India and Pakistan reach the final on September 28, they could meet for the third time in the tournament.