The final group phase match of the Asia Cup between India and Oman will find it difficult to divert the attention of viewers from the supercharged contest that awaits on Sunday.
Pakistan huffed and puffed their way to victory over the UAE on Wednesday after hectic negotiations with the governing body and tournament stakeholders over the handshake controversy with the Indian team.
At one point on Wednesday, Pakistan looked like pulling out of the match against the hosts, sticking to their demand of the removal of match referee Andy Pycroft, who they believe did not take appropriate action when India refused to shake the hands of Pakistan players.
However, the match went ahead, albeit an hour late. Pakistan were in deep trouble batting first at one stage, reduced to 110-7 after 17 overs.
But another courageous unbeaten knock of 29 by Shaheen Afridi took them to a competitive score of 146-9, which proved enough for a 41-run win and a rematch against India in the Super Four stage on Sunday.
But India can't look too far ahead as they must first face Oman, who have underwhelmed so far, in Abu Dhabi on Friday.
Oman were bundled out for 67 in their first match against Pakistan and then lost to the UAE by 42 runs.
The only motivation for them now is to play without fear against an India side who are not only the reigning world champions and No 1-ranked side, but also have the top-ranked T20 batter (Abhishek Sharma) and bowler (Varun Chakravarthy) in their ranks.
India might look to test a few other players in the capital, namely left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh and maybe even Harshit Rana, while giving the likes of Jasprit Bumrah a break in a contest that has little riding on it.
While batting first has not always been easy, with the pitches aiding seamers and spinners in the UAE, Abu Dhabi has been better for batting so far.
Although India have more than enough firepower and talent to tackle anything that Oman throws at them, they would not want any doubts to creep in ahead of the match against Pakistan that will have considerable venom.
Pakistan will also be looking at the match on Friday to find any weaknesses in India's line-up. But while they do that, the team in green also realise they need to improve their own batting considerably.
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Pakistan's Shaheen Afridi after rattling the stumps of UAE opener Alishan Sharafu in their Asia Cup match at the Dubai International Stadium. All photos Chris Whiteoak / The National -
Abrar Ahmed was the pick of Pakistan bowlers, taking 2-13 -
UAE spinner Simranjeet Singh celebrates the prized wicket of Pakistan's Fakhar Zaman -
Seamer Junaid Siddique finished with stunning figures of 4-18 -
Pakistan's Shaheen Afridi scored a crucial 29 lower down the order -
Junaid Siddique dismissed Pakistan's Saim Ayub early -
Simranjeet Singh celebrates the wicket of Pakistan's Hasan Nawaz -
Pakistan team arrived at the Dubai International Stadium an hour late
Pakistan struggled with the bat in both their matches at the Asia Cup, and it was only because of pacer Afridi that they had any sort of score in both matches; Afridi's crucial knock in the death overs against the UAE took the total past 140 and towards safety.
Pakistan captain Salman Agha admitted batting is an area of concern for him.
“We got the job done but we still need to improve our batting in the middle order,” Agha said after the win against the UAE. “That's been a concern and something we need to work on.”
And while he did not take the name of his next opponents, Agha said his team need to be prepared to beat any side.
“We are ready, we are ready for any challenge,” he added.
“We just want to play good cricket. If we play good cricket, like we have played in the last few months, I think we'll be good against any side.”
