Team India crush UAE but miss a trick in Asia Cup opener

9-wicket win. 93 balls to spare. Net Run Rate of 10.4. Team India defeated UAE with ease, no surprises there, but still ended up missing a golden opportunity. After winning the toss, Suryakumar Yadav chose to bowl first, fully aware that UAE was no real match for the world champions.

We get it - a win against UAE was practically pre-installed. But hey, what if the real win wasn’t just about what showed up on the scoreboard? We’re not taking anything away from the team’s dominant performance, but wouldn’t opting to bat first have made more sense here?

This is a new batting lineup, after all. Shubman Gill was playing T20Is after a year. Had India batted first, he could’ve had more time out in the middle to get into rhythm.

Tilak Varma didn’t get to bat at his regular number 3 spot, a position he’s made his own in this Indian T20 setup. Sanju Samson did get a chance in the XI, but didn’t open the innings. As for how effective he can be lower down the order, that’s still a mystery.

Plus, what are batting conditions like in the UAE after 10 overs? Does the ball get softer and harder to hit? These are questions the team management could’ve explored if they had batted first. Now, they’ll be forced to crack that code against a much tougher opposition.

So yes, Team India looks like a well-oiled machine right now, but this was a real chance to give the new batting order some meaningful game time and it just slipped away.

Put into bat, UAE surprised India with a 26-run opening stand. But they had no answer to a Jasprit Bumrah classic, as a perfect yorker a dangerous-looking Alishan Sharafu. This was a perfect reminder that Boom Boom might be playing his first T20I since the T20 World Cup final a year ago, but he is still the best in the business.

It was all downhill for UAE after that. Their batters looked clueless against Kuldeep Yadav's spin, as the Chinaman picked up 4 wickets for just 7 runs to derail UAE, who were eventually bowled for a mere 57.

Abhishek Sharma made his intensions clear with a first-ball six in the run-chase and smashed a fiery 16-ball-30. Shubman Gill too looked at his usual best and remained unbeaten on 20, as India crossed the finish line in just 4.3 overs, making it one of the shortest ever T20Is. In fact, India won with 93 balls to spare, which is an Asian record.