Pakistan Shaheens Thrash India ‘A’ as Sadaqat Shines With Match-Winning 79*
DOHA: Pakistan Shaheens booked their spot in the semifinal of the ACC Men’s Asia Cup Rising Stars 2025 after outclassing India ‘A’ by eight wickets on Sunday at the West End Park International Cricket Stadium.
Chasing a modest 137, Pakistan’s openers Maaz Sadaqat and Mohammad Naeem wasted no time putting India under pressure. Both batters scored freely, and Sadaqat in particular looked in terrific touch, peppering the boundary to take Pakistan to 50 inside five overs.
The opening stand reached 55 before Yash Thakur broke through in the sixth over, removing Naeem for a brisk 14 off 10, featuring a four and a six.
Unfazed, Sadaqat powered on and brought up his second consecutive fifty of the tournament, guiding Pakistan to 77-1 by the seventh over. Yasir Khan joined him and chipped in with 11 from nine balls before falling—India’s second breakthrough.
Mohammad Faiq then took the crease and helped steady the chase as Pakistan crossed 100 in the 10th over. Sadaqat kept the momentum going, repeatedly finding the fence and partnering with Faiq to push the score to 130-2 by the 13th over.
Pakistan wrapped up the chase early in the 14th over. Sadaqat finished unbeaten on a superb 79 off 47 balls, smashing seven fours and four sixes, while Faiq sealed the win with a six to remain not out on 16 off 14.
Earlier, India were asked to bat first and started their innings with intent. Vaibhav Suryavanshi attacked right from the outset, hitting boundaries at will. But Pakistan struck early when Shahid Aziz dismissed Priyansh Arya for 10, reducing India to 30-1 in the fourth over.
Naman Dhir then joined Suryavanshi, and together they kept the run rate healthy, pushing India past 50 in the sixth over. Their threatening stand ended when Saad Masood removed Dhir for a quick-fire 35 off 20 (six fours, one six), leaving India 79-2.
Suryavanshi continued to dominate the scoring and looked poised for a half-century before Sufiyan Muqeem ended his innings on 45 from 28 balls, an innings that featured five boundaries and three sixes.
India’s middle order faltered from there. Captain Jitesh Sharma managed just five before falling to Maaz Sadaqat. The slide continued as Saad Masood sent Ashutosh Sharma back for a duck, and Maaz struck again to dismiss Nehal Wadhera for eight, leaving India struggling at 104-6.
Ubaid Shah accounted for Ramandeep Singh (11 off 9), while Harsh Dubey tried to resist with 19 off 15. But the innings crumbled quickly as Ahmed Daniyal removed Thakur, Shahid Aziz dismissed Dubey, and Suyash Sharma fell without scoring, ending India’s innings at 136 in 19 overs.
Shahid Aziz led the bowling effort with an impressive 3/24 in three overs. Maaz Sadaqat and Saad Masood claimed two wickets each, while Ubaid Shah, Ahmed Daniyal, and Sufiyan Muqeem all picked up one apiece.
