Dubai: India failed to continue their winning streak in T20 games after Pakistan defeated Men in Blue by five wickets in the Super 4 stage contest on Sunday.
Pakistan’s in-form batsman Mohammad Rizwan outplayed the Indian bowling attack by playing a crucial match-winning knock of 71 runs, chasing down the mammoth score of 182 runs in the second innings.
With Afghanistan and Sri Lanka in the Super 4 stage, India from here has to register consecutive wins in the upcoming games against Sri Lanka on September 6 and Afghanistan on September 8. With this, India will eliminate Afghanistan from the race of the top two in the Robin-round format.
Net Run Rate (NRR) is likely to be a decider in the tournament. If Pakistan goes on to defeat Sri Lanka and India too manages to register a crucial win against the island nation, then there are high chances of an ultimate third encounter between India and Pakistan on September 11.
In a situation of Sri Lanka winning the two games, the NRR will then determine who moves ahead to the top position in the league. India needs to win the upcoming games with a bigger margin to secure their place in top two.
Mohammad Rizwan in the post-match interview claimed that fans from both sides anticipate a third encounter between India and Pakistan in the series. He further added that “We have jokingly said among ourselves that its a best of three-match series.”