Fakhar, bowlers take Pakistan into Super Four

Here's a snippet of Danyal Rasool's report: On a day of remarkable drama where few will remember any on-field events, Pakistan did just about enough to keep their focus and secure the win that guarantees them safe passage to the Super Four. But they had to weather a spirited bowling performance from the UAE and a bright start with the bat, and were given an almighty scare. But an all-round performance from Shaheen Afridi and a team effort from the Pakistan bowlers ultimately overpowered the UAE, securing a 41-run victory as the hosts were dismissed for 105.

It didn't come easy, especially after the way they batted but a superb bowling show helped Pakistan beat UAE by 41 runs. It was a quick finish, with UAE losing their last seven wickets for just 20 runs. Shaheen returned for his spell and had Harshit Kaushik strangled down leg, getting the wicket after a review. A direct throw from Sahibzada from midwicket caught Simranjeet Singh short before Rauf got rid of Haider Ali. The last wicket came via a run out, too as UAE collapsed in a heap.

Haris Rauf strikes on return, getting rid of Parashar, who slices the fast bowler to deep cover. Abrar Ahmed then picks his second wicket of the night off the last ball of his spell, cleaning up Asif Khan with a carrom ball. Abrar has easily been the difference this evening. His four overs have gone for just 13, which includes 12 dots.

Salman Agha clearly believes that it is spin to win as he brings himself on in the 16th over. Gets smashed for a six by Chopra but gets his revenge soon. Chopra nails a slog sweep but doesn't get the elevation and Nawaz takes a simple catch.

It's favouring Pakistan at the moment, 56.92% to UAE's 43.08. That wasn't the case mid-innings with UAE in front. UAE have wickets in hand but both Rahul Chopra and Dhruv Parashar are striking at below 100, and that is a concern. The three Pakistan spinners have bowled 10 overs so far and conceded 56 runs and picked two wickets. UAE need quick runs and need them right about now.

It's been a tournament to forget for Saim Ayub, the batter, but his bowling has been a highlight. Once again, he is being Pakistan's key bowler in the middle overs. He is firing it quicker, and also slipping in the carrom ball from time to time. Has already picked six wickets in this tournament, five of them in the powerplay. He concedes only 17 runs in his four overs, which includes 13 dots balls.

At the other end, Nawaz and Abrar have also dried up the runs. There is also a lot of dew and the ball is getting tougher to grip but the spinners are keeping Pakistan in the game. Just two fours since the powerplay for UAE, and the required rate is now over nine.

Most wickets in a T20I series/tournament by an opening batter (min 3 inns as opener, Full Member nations)

11 - Shane Watson (T20 WC 2012)
10 - Sikandar Raza (T20 WC regional qualifiers 2023)
6* - Saim Ayub (Asia Cup 2025)
6 - Rachin Ravindra (v BAN, 2021)

Ouch! The Pakistan wicketkeeper Mohammad Haris lobs a throw back towards the bowler, but it instead goes onto hit Ruchira Palliyaguruge on the head. He seems to be in a bit of a strife, and is continuously rubbing his head. A concussion check and he walks off with what seems like a precautionary measure and is replaced by Gazi Sohel, the reserve umpire. Haris goes and apologises to Palliyaguruge.

Pakistan have ended the powerplay on a high courtesy of their two spinners, Abrar Ahmed and Saim Ayub. Abrar first gets rid of the UAE main man, Muhammad Waseem who slices a carrom ball over point with Nawaz sprinting back from point and taking a stunning catch running back. Ayub then breaches Zohaib's defenses with a flatter length ball that the batter missed on the backfoot. Ayub is already the third-highest wicket-taker so far in the series, but it is his batting that Pakistan will be more concerned about.

A much-needed early blow for Pakistan as Shaheen Afridi flattens Sharafu's off pole. It was a fuller-length ball just outside off stump, which Sharaful dragged onto his stumps. UAE are already off to a bit of a flier. Sharafu smashed Nawaz over long-on right after Waseem had cut him through point. Haris Rauf, meanwhile, concedes five wides before Waseem thumps him over mid-off.

It's a simple equation: the winner joins India in the Super Four and the loser goes home. UAE have a solid chance to cause an upset here after a sensational bowling performance. Now for the batters to play smartly and get over the line. Shaheen Shah Afridi bowls the first over, and Alishan Sharafu is up and about right away, pumping him past point. ICYMI, here's how Sharafu is learning from the best and using it to make UAE better.

Fast bowler Junaid Siddique picked 4 for 18 while left-arm spinner Simranjeet Singh picked three wickets to restrict Pakistan to 146 for 9 in a knockout clash against UAE. That Pakistan reached 146 was down to Shaheen Afridi’s late burst, where he thrashed an unbeaten 29 off 14 balls, including two fours and six in the last over.

The start of the match was delayed by an hour and only after the PCB claimed that Andy Pycroft had apologised for the "miscommunication" in the India-Pakistan game on Sunday. UAE won the toss and had no hesitation in bowling first.

Their decision was vindicated with Siddiqui sending back Saim Ayub for a third-straight duck, who top-edged the fast bowler to deep third. Sahibzada Farhan survived an lbw appeal, which was overturned on DRS but fell soon after top-edging a pull to long leg as Pakistan slipped to 9 for 2 in 2.4 overs.

Fakhar Zaman and Salman Agha had the most profitable stand for Pakistan, adding 61 off 51 balls for the third wicket. Fakhar was the aggressor in the partnership as he went twice after offspinner Dhruv Parashar for back-to-back sixes, reaching his half-century off 35 balls.

Pakistan, however, lost wickets consistently. Agha, looking to go inside-out over covers, sliced Parashar to deep cover after drinks before Simranjeet picked two wickets in an over. Fakhar fell soon after his half-century, caught off a leading edge to short extra cover, while Hasan Nawaz was trapped lbw.

Siddique picked his third wicket in the form of Mohammad Nawaz and then removed Haris with a legcutter. One of these two teams will be eliminated after today's result. The winner joins India in the Super Four, while the loser exits.

Junaid Siddique is having the time of his life as he picks his fourth wicket taking out Mohammad Haris. He has been absolutely brilliant this evening. He first picked two wickets in the powerplay, then removed Mohammad Nawaz with Waseem taking a spectacular catch running back from mid-off. In the last over of his spell, he bowled Haris with a legcutter that ratlled the leg stump.

He finishes with 4 for 18.

It’s been a sensational spell from the left-arm spinner. After striking twice in an over, he now sends back Khushdil Shah. A hint of spin into the batter who goes across the line by jumping down the track, gets it nowhere near the middle and Waseem takes a simple catch at deep midwicket. He was hitting to the longer part of the ground and fails, big time. Simranjeet sprints around in celebration, Imran Tahir style.

It’s been classical left-arm spin bowling from him. Just stuck to his lines and varied his pace really well all through. He's conceded just two fours in his four-over spell and bowled nine fots. And now Pakistan are in deep trouble.

He’s been the only shining light in this bleak Pakistan batting. Gets to his 13th T20I half-century off 35 balls with a push to long-off to Parashar. But... but, he's fallen straight after and this is going from bad to worse for Pakistan. Fakhar backs away big time but Simranjeet follows him and gets the ball to rip. Fakhar is cramped for room, gets a leading edge and short extra cover does the rest.

Simranjeet is now really bossing the show, as three balls later, he traps Hasan Nawaz lbw. It was pushed slightly slower on the stumps with the ball pitching on middle and leg and going straight through. Nawaz reviews, though and replays confirm that the ball would have clipped the top of leg stump.

He wasn't going anywhere really, striking at well below 100 and now falls for 20 off 27. He was nearly dismissed one ball earlier when he bottom-edged a reverse sweep off Parashar perilously close to his off stump. But the offspinner gets his man the very next ball. Agha looks to go inside-out over covers, slices it and deep cover does the rest.

They dropped left-arm fast bowler Jawadullah for left-arm spinner Simranjeet. A key reason for that could be their opponents. Among Full Member nations in T20Is in 2025, Pakistan have the worst strike-rate against left-arm spinners. They have also lost the joint-most wickets to left-arm spinners (22) and have the worst average, 15.68.

Fakhar tries to dispel that notion as he goes after Haider Ali twice in two balls, but Simranjeet is bowling well.

Fakhar Zaman has gone on the offensive against offspinner Dhruv Parashar, first clubbing him across the line over deep midwicket and then waltzing down the track and going straight over the bowler's head for back-to-back sixes. Agha, who hasn't looked comfortable at all, then ends the powerplay flicking Rohid length ball fine.

Despite the late surge, this has been an excellent powerplay for UAE. Pakistan are 39 for 2 after six overs.

This has now turned tricky for Pakistan with Junaid Siddique striking for a second time. Sahibzada Farhan backs away but Siddique follows him with a short of a length ball. He is cramped for room and top-edges a half-hearted pull with long leg taking a catch on the second attempt. The ball bounced out of Muhammad Zohaib's hand, hit his cap and he took it, eventually.

At the other end, Muhammad Rohid is also getting the ball to move around. There is definitely some spice on this surface and the ball is seaming around. He induces a thick outside edge off Salman Agha's blade but there is no slip in place.

It's been all UAE in the first four overs

Saim Ayub's horror Asia Cup continues. After two golden ducks against Oman and India, Ayub now has a two-ball duck against UAE. A half-hearted shot brings about his downfall. Siddique gets a back-of-length ball outside off, Ayub slashes at it, gets a thick top-edge and deep third takes a comfortable catch over his head.

This is what happens when form is not on your side. Ayub would generally just ride the bounce, allow the ball to come to him and cut this away. But, he went with hard hands and this is just the start UAE were looking for. Earlier, Siddique, who is the highest wicket-taker for UAE in T20Is, also rapped Farhan on the pad with the on-field umpire giving it out. But, replays suggested that the ball was going over the stumps.

From Sampath Bandarupalli: Abdullah Shafique had four ducks in a row in T20Is. Him and Mohammad Hafeez (3) are the only ones with three or more consecutive ducks in men's T20Is among Pakistan players before Ayub.

It's already been an action-packed day off the field, now time for some action on it. The national anthems are done. Here come the two umpires, followed by the UAE team and the two Pakistan openers Saim Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan. Junaid Siddique has the new ball and is over the wicket.

Toss UAE opt to bowl vs Pakistan

After a 90-minute to the start of the game, UAE have won the toss in Dubai and elected to bowl. Captain Muhammad Waseem said that he expected dew to play a part, while confirming that Simranjeet Singh has come in for Muhammad Jawadullah.

"We will try to restrict them," Waseem said. "It is a do or die game. We will take advantage. We had a good game in Abu Dhabi; this is a different game."

Pakistan captain Salman Agha said he wanted to bat as "I always believe in putting the scoreboard pressure". Pakistan have made two changes to the side that lost to India on Sunday, with Haris Rauf and Khushdil Shah coming in. They have replaced Sufiyan Muqeem and Faheem Ashraf in the XI.

One of these two teams will be eliminated in today's game. Both sides beat Oman comfortably and lost to India heavily, making this fixture in Dubai a knockout game: the winner joins India in the Super Four, while the loser exits.

There was uncertainty over whether the match would go ahead at all and ultimately caused the start to be delayed by 60 minutes. The match went ahead after Pycroft apologised to the Pakistan team, according to the PCB, for his actions during the India-Pakistan game on Sunday.

UAE: 1 Alishan Sharafu, 2 Muhammad Waseem (capt), 3 Asif Khan, 4 Muhammad Zohaib, 5 Harshit Kaushik, 6 Rahul Chopra (wk), 7 Dhruv Parashar, 8 Haider Ali, 9 Muhammad Rohid Khan, 10 Simranjeet Singh, 11 Junaid Siddique

Pakistan: 1 Saim Ayub, 2 Sahibzada Farhan, 3 Mohammad Haris (wk), 4 Fakhar Zaman, 5 Salman Agha (capt), 6 Khushdil Shah, 7 Hasan Nawaz, 8 Mohammad Nawaz, 9 Shaheen Afridi, 10 Haris Rauf, 11 Abrar Ahmed

While there has been no statement from the ICC on the matter, the PCB has issued one that claims Pycroft apologised to the Pakistan team.

Here's the full statement from the PCB: "The ICC’s match referee, Andy Pycroft, has apologised to the manager and captain of the Pakistan cricket team. Andy Pycroft had barred the captains of India and Pakistan from shaking hands during their match.

The Pakistan Cricket Board had strongly reacted to Andy Pycroft’s actions. Andy Pycroft termed the September 14 incident a result of miscommunication and apologised. The ICC has expressed its willingness to conduct an inquiry into the code of conduct violation that occurred during the September 14 match."

Multiple sources have told ESPNcricinfo that Andy Pycroft remains match referee for the game - as we had reported earlier in the day. The Pakistan team, meanwhile, has arrived at the ground.

ESPNcricinfo understands that we will have a full game. The toss will take place at 7pm local time and the first ball will be bowled at 7.30pm. We still don't know whether Pycroft will officiate the match or not.

Mohsin Naqvi has just tweeted: "We have asked the Pakistan team to depart for the Dubai Cricket Stadium. Further details to follow."

Shashank pings from the hotel: "People are being asked to leave the lobby. No filming. The area is being cleared. The team bus is moving from the parking bay to the entrance."

"Mohsin Naqvi, the PCB chair, is meeting and discussing with former chairs Ramiz Raja and Najam Sethi," Amir Mir, PCB spokesperson, told reporters at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. "They are discussing the issue and are in touch with Dubai over the matter. The match has been delayed by an hour for now."

It is not clear who has okayed the delay, although it is worth noting that Mohsin Naqvi is also the current ACC president.

Shashank Kishore, meanwhile, tells me that the UAE players arrived at the venue 20 minutes ago. They have started with their warm-up routines. A couple of them even finished their pre-match flash interview with the broadcaster.

The PCB blamed Pycroft following the conclusion of Sunday's clash between India and Pakistan, during which the Indian players refused to shake hands with the Pakistanis at the toss and at the end of the game. Pakistan captain Salman Agha skipped the post-match presentation in protest, though the coach Mike Hesson did appear at the post-game press conference.

The PCB claimed Pycroft had told Agha that there would be no handshakes at the toss, which it argued is in contravention to MCC laws. In the complaint to the ICC general manager Wasim Khan, the PCB said Pycroft's actions had violated the MCC's laws and were contrary to the spirit of cricket, and insisted that he be removed from the remaining Asia Cup fixtures. There were also reports, though not formally stated by either the PCB or its chairman Mohsin Naqvi that Pakistan were considering withdrawing from the tournament if this demand was not met.

ESPNcricinfo understands that PCB officials were involved in discussions with the ICC on Wednesday but no change was made to the match-officials roster.

On Tuesday evening, Pakistan had cancelled their press conference on the eve of their game against UAE as the fallout from the handshake controversy continued. Pakistan's training session after the scheduled press conference, however, went ahead as planned.