Kuldeep Yadav made a grand comeback to international cricket after a while as his 4-wicket haul bamboozled UAE totally. Kuldeep Yadav was special in his 2.1 overs as he picked up 4 wickets for 7 runs and Shivam Dube ably supported him well with 3 wickets. Put into bat first, UAE were decently placed at 41/2 in 6 overs and then collapsed to 57 all out in 13.1 overs as the Indian bowlers took control in the middle overs. Shivam Dube chipped in with 3/4 in 2 overs as well.
In reply, India made light work of the target of 58 runs as they chased it down in 4.3 overs with Abhishek Sharma scoring 30 off 16 balls the only man to get out. Shubman Gill made an unbeaten 20 off 9 balls and captain Suryakumar Yadav was unbeaten on 7 off 2 balls in the end as India won by 9 wickets with 15.3 overs to spare. It was a dominant win for the Men in Blue.
Kuldeep Yadav & Shivam Dube skittle UAE out for 57 in 13.1 overs
Put into bat first, Alishan Sharafu and Muhammad Waseem came out to open for UAE while Hardik Pandya had ball in hand for India. Sharafu started positively as he hit Hardik Pandya for back-to-back boundaries to make a statement. Jasprit Bumrah came onto bowl next. Sharafu hit Bumrah for a boundary through long leg. Axar Patel came into the attack next as Sharafu took him on and went over deep extra cover for the maximum.
Bumrah struck for India with a great yorker as he dismissed Sharafu for 22 off 17 balls with 3 fours and a maximum to his name. He bowled a yorker length at the off-stump, Sharafu got his front leg away and looked to get his bat down in time. He got beaten for pace and the ball crashed onto the base of the off-stump. Mohammad Zuhaib Khan came out to bat next.
Varun Chakaravarthy came onto bowl next and got rid of Zuhaib Khan for 2 off 5 balls. He tossed it up around the fourth stump line and was a googly from the bowler which straightened. Zuhaib swung his bat across the line but got a leading edge which lobbed up in the air. Kuldeep Yadav at backward point back tracked and took a safe catch. Rahul Chopra came out to bat next. Bumrah came to bowl the final over of powerplay.
Waseem hit Bumrah for a boundary past mid-off. He targeted Bumrah again as he hit him for back-to-back boundaries to end the powerplay overs. At the end of the powerplay, UAE were decently placed at 41/2 in 6 overs. Kuldeep Yadav came onto bowl after the powerplay and bowled a miserly over. Axar returned and bowled another decent over. Kuldeep struck for India and got his first wicket by dismissing Rahul Chopra for 3 off 7 balls.
Kuldeep from over the wicket bowled a flighted delivery full around off-stump, Rahul pressed forward and got underneath it to smash it over wide long-on and mistimed it from the toe end of the blade. Shubman Gill at long-on moved to his right and took a good running catch. Asif Khan came out to the middle and got off the mark straightaway. Kuldeep got another in the over as he dismissed Waseem for 19 off 22 balls with 3 fours to his name.
Kuldeep bowled a flipper on a length around leg from Kuldeep. Waseem shuffled across his stumps a bit and got down on one knee and looked to play the sweep shot behind square on the onside. He got beaten on the inside edge and was wrapped up on the front pad. It was given OUT. The review was made in hope and it came back as Three Reds and a review was lost. Harshit Kaushik came out to bat next and got off the mark with a brace.
Kuldeep got another in the over as he dismissed Kaushik for 2 off 2 balls. Kuldeep bowled a tossed up delivery full around fourth stump line which was a googly once again. Harshit prod forward and looked to defend. He played for the leg break delivery and left a big gap between bat and pad. The ball snuck through the gap and crashed the stumps. Dhruv Parashar came out to bat next. Varun Chakaravarthy returned and wasted a LBW appeal and DRS against Asif Khan. Dhruv Parashar was given OUT LBW but he reviewed it and turned the decision in his favour as the umpire changed his decision.
At the end of 10 overs at the halfway stage of the innings, UAE were struggling at 51/5 as players took Drinks Break. Shivam Dube was introduced into the attack after the break. Dube got his first wicket as he got rid of Asif Khan for 2 off 7 balls. He bowled a back of a length delivery on the fifth stump line dragged the length and extracted some extra bounce as Asif did not move his feet and poked at the ball. He got the outside edge and Samson dived to his right to take a two-handed catch. Simranjeet Singh Kang came out to bat next.
Axar got himself his first wicket as he dismissed Kang for 1 off 5 balls. He bowled a full length delivery on the fourth stump line coming back with the arm, Simranjeet went for the sweep and was wrapped in front of the stumps with the ball hitting the front pad. The umpire gave it OUT. He had a chat with his partner and decided to take the review and umpire’s call meant the review was retained but he had to go. Haider Ali came out to bat next and got off the mark straightaway.
Dube got another one as he dismissed Parashar for 1 off 7 balls. He bowled a length delivery on the off-stump line, Parashar was too forward trying to flick it through the onside, his head was falling into the off-side. He missed the ball on the inside edge as it struck him on the front pad around shin height. The review was taken and three reds meant UAE lost a wicket and another review. Junaid Siddique came out to bat next.
There was a moment in the game where a towel fell off and Samson effected a run out of Siddique but the captain of India Suryakumar Yadav revoked the appeal and the batter stayed out there. But Dube soon dismissed Siddique for a bronze duck. It was a slow off-cutter on a length pitching outside the off-stump, Siddique failed to get underneath it swinging hard away from the body after clearing his front leg. He got a top edge flying high up in the air just inside the circle. SKY at mid-on gets underneath it and took the catch. Muhammad Rohid Khan came into bat next and got off the mark with a brace.
It was fitting that Kuldeep Yadav got the last wicket of the innings as he got rid of Haider Ali for 1 off 2 balls. Kuldeep Yadav bowled a good length leg break pitching outside the off-stump and turning away slightly away from the southpaw. Haider on the front foot with the ball beating the inside edge. The ball kissed the thigh pad and onto Samson’s gloves. The appeal was given and with no reviews left the innings was over at 57 all out in 13.1 overs. Rohid remained unbeaten on 2 while just 2 extras given by Indian bowlers.
The Indian bowling was spot on with Kuldeep Yadav leading the way with his 4-wicket haul as he finished with 4/7 in 2.1 overs. Shivam Dube supported him well with his 3/4 in 2 overs. Jasprit Bumrah got a wicket in his 1/19 in 3 overs. Axar Patel chipped in with 1/13 in 3 overs. Varun Chakaravarthy also bowled well for his 1/4 in 2 overs. Hardik Pandya bowled an over for 10 runs. This meant India needed a mere 58 runs to win off 20 overs to collect the points.
Abhishek Sharma & Shubman Gill complete the formalities in 4.3 overs winning by 9 wickets
Chasing a mere 58 to win, Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill walked out to bat for India while Haider Ali had ball in hand for UAE. Abhishek started with a bang as he launched Haider over mid-off for the maximum. He hit another boundary through cover and point. Muhammad Rohid Khan came onto bowl from the other end. Gill joined in the fun as he drove him through the covers for a boundary. Gill got a maximum away as he cleared square leg for the maximum off Rohid.
Dhruv Parashar came into the attack next. Abhishek took him on as he launched him over long-on for the maximum and then hit a boundary through the long-off region. Junaid Siddique came into the attack next. Abhishek smashed him over deep backward square fence for the maximum. But Siddique gave UAE something to cheer about as he dismissed Abhishek Sharma for 30 off 16 balls with 2 fours and 3 sixes to his name.
Junaid bowled a good length ball on the off-stump line angled across. Abhishek on the front foot swung hard to clear long-on but got it off the bottom half of the bat lobbying up in the air and on the on side. Haider from mid-on paced to his left and took a good running catch just outside the ring. Captain Suryakumar Yadav came out to bat next and got off the mark with the maximum over fine leg.
Simranjeet Singh Kang came onto bowl next and Shubman Gill hit the winning runs by pulling it down the ground past mid-on for a boundary as India chased down the score in 4.3 overs. Gill was unbeaten on 20 off 9 balls with 2 fours and a six to his name while Surya was unbeaten on 7 off 2 balls with a maximum to his name. 3 extras given by UAE as the game was done and dusted inside 5 overs.
Junaid Siddique got the only wicket to fall in his only over. The rest went for runs as India were in a hurry to finish this off. India won by 9 wickets with more than 15 overs to spare and for his outstanding bowling, Kuldeep Yadav was awarded the Player of the Match Award.
What Lies Ahead
So, the bandwagon shifts from Group A back to Group B and to Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi as we will have a first look at Bangladesh as they will face Hong Kong at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium on 11th September 2025 at 8PM IST. Bangladesh will look to get off to a winning start against bruised Hong Kong.
We will see how it goes and whether Hong Kong can upset Bangladesh or will it be a routine victory for the Tigers. Find out soon.
Also Read:Â Asia Cup 2025: Kuldeep Yadav & Co Bamboozle UAE