Asia Cup 2018: We Are Proud But It Is Bitter Sweet: Says Anshuman Rath After Narrow Loss To India

India overcame a spirited chase from Hong Kong to beat them by 26 runs and start their Asia Cup campaign on a winning note.

India would have feared for the worst when Hong Kong openers Anshuman Rath and Nizakat Khan put on a record 174 runs for the first wicket. But once Rath was sent back by Kuldeep Yadav, the minnows just could not manage to catch up with the escalating required run-rate. Khan tried his best but fell 8 runs short of a well deserved century.

And once both the openers departed in a space of one run, the writing became very much clear. On a tough pitch, the other batsmen just could not get going. Consequently, Hong Kong were restricted for 259 for 8.

Earlier in the game, a century from Shikhar Dhawan helped India post a challenging 285. At 240 for 2 in the 41st over, India looked said for a total in excess of 300 before their hopes were quashed by a middle-order collapse.

Rohit Sharma and Dhawan gave India a decent start by adding 45 runs for the first before Ehsan Khan dismissed Rohit for 23.

But Dhawan and comeback man Ambati Rayudu did not let Hong Kong make the most of the dismissal. Dhawan was getting runs quite easily while Rayudu played the role of the second fiddle to perfection. Both the players went on to complete their fifties to lay the foundation for a big total.

The added 116 runs for the second wicket before Rayudu departed. Dhawan went on to complete his century off 105 balls in the 36th over.

India was looking set to finish the proceedings strongly. However, Dhawan (127), MS Dhoni (0) and Karthik (28) departed in quick succession as India found themselves reeling at 248 for 5 from 240 for 2. Kedar Jadhav then played a handy knock of 28 to ensure India finish on a good note.

Speaking after the game, Hong Kong skipper Rath said that he was proud of his team’s effort but also expressed his disappointment over the narrow loss.

“We are proud but it is bitter sweet. We were in a position to win and probably should have. We had a good start but lost too many key wickets in the middle but credit to the Indian bowlers. They bowled well and bowled to their plans. (On Hong Kong’s fearless brand of cricket) We have had no pressure coming into the tournament and wanted to play with a smile on our faces on the big stage. We’ve done that and done ourselves proud,” he said at the presentation ceremony.

“(Whether the team had responded well after the last defeat) Yes, would have been great if we had rolled over the best team in the world, wasn’t to be but super proud of the boys. (On the positives) Loads of them, Nizakat’s innings at the top was really good, he had been batting at 4 during the Qualifiers and gave the nod to bat up. Then our bowling in the death, gave just 48 off the last 10 overs and that against the best ODI side in the world really means a lot. Shows the brand of cricket we play. The way Shikhar batted, Rayudu batted well and they could have got 350 but we stuck at it in this heat to pull it back,” he addd.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong are now out of the tournament after losing their second game.