Asia Cup 2018: Pakistan are Favourites to Beat India - Rashid Latif

Former Pakistan cricketer, Rashid Latif, on Saturday, said Pakistan could bounce back and beat India in the ongoing Asia Cup 2018 game in Dubai.

Pakistan and India had entered the Asia Cup 2018 on the back of contrasting few months. While Pakistan drew a Test series in England before winning the T20I tri-series and ODI series in Zimbabwe, India lost the ODI and Test series in England. However, the past form counted for little, as India proved their title-credentials.

The Men in Blue have won all their three games so far including an eight-wicket win over the Pakistani team earlier. After being given a mighty scare by Hong Kong in the opening match, India was back to their dominating best in the following games against Pakistan and Bangladesh in the UAE.

The Rohit Sharma-led side bowled out both the teams for subpar totals before chasing down the total with utmost ease to register comprehensive wins. India bowled out their neighbours for just 162. In reply, they chased down the modest total in 29 overs by losing two wickets.

Bangladesh also turned out to be a no match for India. The Tigers were all out for a paltry 173. In reply, the defending champions lost just three wickets to cross the finishing line inside 37 overs.

Pakistan, on the other hand, has looked scratchy. They began their campaign with an expected dominating win over Hong Kong. However, they failed to back it up against India and suffered a crushing loss. They were on the verge of defeat against Afghanistan too but managed to win the thriller in Asia Cup 2018.

But despite the way the tournament has panned out so far, Rashid Latif believes Pakistan are favourites to beat India. The former wicketkeeper-batsman also said both the teams would play the final.

“Pakistan cricket team was in skies and was not ready to give India any outside chance in the Asia Cup after defeating them in the Champions Trophy final. But the defeat in the pool match is an eye-opener. It will help green caps a great deal in the coming matches. I still believe, Pakistan are favourites to beat India, and they both will play the final,” he said.

Latif is hopeful Mohammad Amir would be back in the playing eleven for the Super Four clash on Sunday.

“The good thing is team got another opportunity today against India. I am highly hopeful the right combination would be selected, and Amir will return to the starting lineup. Sarfraz did made few mistakes, but it doesn’t mean he is finished. There is still a lot of cricket to be played,” he said.

The arch-rivals would take on each other at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday.