UAE T20I Tri-Series 2025: 3 Reasons For UAE’s Loss Against Pakistan.

Hosts UAE crashed to a 31-run loss against Pakistan in the second match of the Tri-Series in Sharjah. The hosts UAE put up a spirited performance and were good in patches in pushing Pakistan hard. But the Men in Green were too good in the end notching up yet another easy win and have made it 2 wins out of 2 and a foot in the final one can say. While there are plenty of positives for both sides, there are areas UAE needs to figure things out to get better at their gameplay. Here we will try to ascertain three reasons for UAE’s loss against Pakistan.

Multiple Bowlers Leaking Runs Hurt UAE Badly. 

UAE came out to bowl and were fired up from the get-go. While they got wickets, they also leaked runs. Yes, the pitch was a good one to bat on, but there was no bowler who could give control and slow down Pakistan’s run rate. Yes, they got the wickets they wanted and bowled Pakistan out eventually but the Men in Green had already reached 200+ by then. So, while the bowlers impressed with wicket-taking ability, they could not control the runs.

Junaid Siddique their lead bowler picked up 3 wickets but conceded 49 runs in 4 overs. Muhammad Saghir Khan also got three wickets but gave away 44 runs. Jawadullah was wicketless but he too gave away 44 runs. Haider Ali was the only one who had some control and picked up a couple of wickets for 32 runs. Dhruv Parashar was the bowler wicketless but considering other bowlers kept things under check. So, we see three bowlers here going above 40 and one close to 50.

This made Pakistan’s job of getting 200 easy which is more than above par on this pitch. Pakistan too had their bowlers going above 40 but they had Mohammad Nawaz who gave them control with 2/21 in 4 overs. Saim Ayub bowled 2 cheap overs for 6 runs and got a wicket while Faheem Ashraf gave only 15 runs in 2 overs. Looking ahead, UAE needs to bring control in their bowling and look to stem the run flow and not just look for wickets. If they were chasing somewhere around 180-190, they would have been in the hunt but chasing 200 was always going to be an uphill task.

Lack of support for Asif Khan in the chase pegged UAE back. 

While chasing 208 for an unlikely win, captain Muhammad Waseem gave them a flying start and looked in control of proceedings till he was run out for 33 off 18 balls. Wickets fell in and around him and after as the team caved in under pressure. One man who stood tall and tried to take the game deep was Asif Khan. Asif’s favourite ground is Sharjah and he put on a show for all of us.

He scored a breath-taking 77 off 35 balls amidst the steep required rate and tried his level best for his side. But in and around him there was little or no support as they failed to rotate the strike. There was no real support for Asif but he kept fighting till he got out towards the end. The players around him were going at run a ball and some below run a ball. It meant the required rate kept climbing up for the home side. Pakistan could not be put under pressure at all.

When one is chasing 208, it has to be a collective effort for a successful chase. One man show cannot win it for you. Yes, Waseem was unfortunate and had he stayed on could have made a match out of it and supported Asif Khan’s efforts. But the other players around them needed to step up. Going forward, UAE needs to perform as a unit in chasing a big score and at least try and make a match out of it than they did yesterday. They showed lots of positive glimpses, but more needs to be done.

Failure to stop Saim Ayub with both bat and ball hurts UAE a lot. 

Saim Ayub was the star for Pakistan as his 69 off 38 balls powered Pakistan apart from a sparkling innings from Hasan Nawaz as well. Ayub batted out of his skins as UAE bowlers constantly hit the slot balls which made it easier for Saim to do his job. Add to that, when they came to chase they could not target Ayub as they could score only 6 runs in 2 overs of his bowling with Ayub managing to pick up a wicket.

And if we take into consideration Mohammad Nawaz’s bowling of 2/21 in 4 overs, it means that UAE hardly could score in 6 overs and lost wickets as well. In a chase of 208, every over and ball matters and the hosts having 6 quiet overs against the spinners hurt them a lot. The fact that they couldn’t take the attack to Ayub with bat in hand will hurt them because we know Saim as a quality player with bat in hand. Although the other Pakistan bowlers went for runs, they had enough in the bank.

Going forward in subsequent games, UAE needs to sort out these little issues and become more game aware and with more experience at the top level they will get better at it. There were a lot of positives for the UAE to come through in this match something from which they can build on in the subsequent games by ironing out their flaws from this game.

What Lies Ahead. 

UAE Tri-Series takes a day’s rest and action resumes on Monday night 1st September 2025, where Afghanistan will battle UAE at 8:30 PM IST at Sharjah Cricket Stadium in Sharjah. Both teams will come into this clash after a loss against Pakistan while chasing as the Men in Green have one foot in the door for the finals.

Which of these two teams will get a win on Monday night and open their account? Afghanistan might look the fancied side on paper, but anything can happen with UAE showing great fight and loads of positives as well. We shall see how things unfold as the Tri-Series will only heat up from here.

Also Read: UAE T20 Tri-Series 2025: 3 Reasons for Afghanistan’s Humiliating Loss Against Pakistan.