GUANGZHOU: Hasan Nawaz’s brilliant 96 off 51 balls went in vain as Pakistan settled for the silver medal after losing to India by 19 runs in the Asian Games Men’s Cricket Competition final on Saturday.
Chasing 212, Pakistan finished at 192 for six. The team kept the match alive until the final over.
Pakistan struggled early and slipped to 39 for three in the seventh over.
Hasan then joined Saim Ayub to revive the chase. The pair added 87 runs for the fourth wicket.
Hasan smashed five fours and seven sixes in his 51-ball innings. He reached his half-century from just 28 balls.
Saim supported him with 29 off 22 balls, while Maaz Sadaqat added 23 runs.
Hasan continued attacking as Pakistan’s required run rate increased. He took the chase deep into the final stages.
However, Hasan fell on the final ball of the innings, four runs short of his century.
Debutant Saad Masood remained unbeaten on 12 from five balls. His innings included two sixes.
Earlier, Abhishek Sharma gave India a flying start with a 20-ball half-century.
He scored 61 runs as India raced to 100 in just 55 balls at Korogi Athletic Park Stadium.
Pakistan’s bowlers regained some control after removing in-form batter Ishan Kishan for 20.
India captain Shreyas Iyer also fell for 21.
However, Tilak Varma and Shivam Dube launched a late attack. The pair added 62 runs from five overs for the sixth wicket.
India finished with the highest score of the tournament.
Their total surpassed the 169 for seven they scored against Sri Lanka in the semi-final.
For Pakistan, Arafat Minhas took two wickets for 25 runs. Ahmed Daniyal also claimed two wickets.
Abrar Ahmed bowled an economical spell of four overs for 29 runs and took one wicket.
Saim Ayub also claimed a wicket as Pakistan fought back with the ball.
Despite Hasan’s outstanding innings, Pakistan could not complete the chase and had to settle for the silver medal.
