The opening game of Asia Cup 2023 between home team Pakistan and Nepal witnessed a very low attendance at the Multan Cricket Stadium in Multan. Notably, this is the first time in many years that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has the hosting rights for any major tournament, but the spectators have not turned up in numbers. Notably, the host nation has yet to share the official attendance, but pictures and videos depict the emptiness in the stadium.
When it comes to the match, Pakistan skipper Babar Azam won the toss and elected to bat first. Against a relatively weak side, the aim will be to post a heavy total and give their batters the momentum ahead of the marquee clash against arch-rivals India on September 2 in Sri Lanka.
A complete empty Stadium in Multan. pic.twitter.com/OD0CUMJ4YF
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) August 30, 2023
Interestingly, ahead of the match, Babar Azam clarified that they are not going to take Nepal lightly and will be focusing on getting the job done. Recently, with their 3-0 win over Afghanistan, the Men in Green became the number one ranked team in ODI cricket and hence, Babar feels that there’s some sort of pressure, but he added that it’s good to have some in order to get going.
Nepal, on the other hand, are playing their first Asia Cup in history. They were handed the ODI status in 2018, and in just five years, they have played some impressive cricket and will be eyeing to cause an upset in the ongoing tournament. Skipper Rohit Paudel will be essential alongside Karan KC and Sandeep Lamichhane.
Meanwhile, Karan has given the first blow to the home team as he picked up the important wicket of Fakhar Zaman. The 33-year-old is going through a rough phase as he couldn’t make the most of the opportunities in the three-match series against Afghanistan and even in the opening game against Nepal, he could score only 14 runs. Skipper Babar Azam, along with Imam-ul-Haq will thus be looking forward to giving the home team some stability after the initial heartbreak.
CricTracker Desk
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