The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 begins on 16th October 2022. In the first match, Sri Lanka will play Namibia in a Super 12 qualifier. Subsequently, Asia Cup 2022 was organized in the T20 format this year in a bid to prepare Asian teams for the T20 World Cup 2022 in an ideal manner.
The finals of the Asia Cup 2022 tournament commenced a few days back. The cricket fans were, as usual, expecting heavyweights like India or Pakistan to clinch the Asia Cup 2022 trophy.
But to everyone’s surprise, the underdogs Sri Lanka captured the trophy. They beat Pakistan in the finals by 23 runs and won the trophy for the 6th time in their history.
The defending champions India shockingly bowed out of the tournament early. They lost two consecutive matches against Pakistan and Bangladesh in the Super 4 phase. Above all, they became the second team to bow out of the tournament after Bangladesh.
Positives for Bangladesh leading up to the T20 World Cup 2022
The Asia Cup 2022 tournament would have been an ideal preparation for the Bangladeshi side leading up to the T20 World Cup 2022. Shakib al Hasan was named as the new Test and T20I captain for Bangladesh. They were missing a few senior players like Tamim Iqbal and Liton Das.
But they lost consecutive group stage matches to Sri Lanka and Afghanistan respectively. Subsequently, they became the first team to get knocked out of the tournament. Still, there were a few positives for Bangladesh that would instill some confidence in their camp.
The Rise of Mosaddek Hossain
The spin-bowling all-rounder Mosaddek Hossain was the only consistent Bangladeshi batter in the tournament. He has been a revelation for the team ever since he made his debut in January 2016.
In their first match of the tournament against Sri Lanka, Hossain scored a quickfire 24 off 9 balls to take Bangladesh to a formidable total of 183/7 in their 20 overs. Then, against Afghanistan, he scored 48 off just 31 balls to take the team total to a respectable 127/7 in their 20 overs.
Though Bangladesh lost both matches, his performance with the bat certainly didn’t go unnoticed.
Liton Das returns from Injury
Liton Das has been one of the most consistent Bangladeshi batters in the past few years. In addition, his wicket-keeping skills are second to none. With his experience, Das can bring the stability needed to the Bangladeshi batting lineup.
Also, being a senior player on the team, he can help out his captain Shakib al Hasan. With his inclusion, the Bangladesh fans can be hopeful of their team to perform well in the T20 World Cup 2022.
Positives for Pakistan leading up to the T20 World Cup 2022
The Pakistan cricket team made it to the finals of the Asia Cup 2022. But they were comprehensively beaten by a young and dynamic Sri Lanka side twice (once in Super 4 and again in the finals).
Although they lost to India on the opening day of Asia Cup 2022, they subsequently beat Hong Kong, Afghanistan, and India in the Super 4 to enter the finals of the Asia Cup. The Pakistani bowlers enjoyed great success throughout the tournament, but it’s the struggle of Pakistani batters that held them back from the cup.
Still, there were plenty of positives for the Pakistan team, leading up to the T20 World Cup 2022.
Pakistani bowlers shine despite Shaheen Afridi’s absence
Pakistan has always been a land of pace bowlers. Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, and Mohammad Hasnain brought that raw pace required to excel in the tournament. They brought Pakistan back in the game whenever they bowled.
The spin duo of Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz were also quite impressive in the middle overs. Now, with the inclusion of Shaheen Afridi for the T20 World Cup 2022, their bowling attack looks even more frightening.
Shan Masood to provide Impetus to the Middle Order
The Pakistan middle had some struggles with the bat in the Asia Cup 2022. With opener Babar Azam out of form, the team’s middle order needed to step up. But it wasn’t the case as the middle order struggled to score runs and ultimately the team could not chase a massive score in the finals.
Left-arm batsman Shan Massod who had an impressive T20 domestic session has been included in the team. Furthermore, the misfiring Fakhar Zaman has been put into the reserves. The team will look to make a few more changes in the middle order before facing India in their first match of the T20 World Cup 2022.
