India vs Pakistan, Asia Cup 2023: Ishan Kishan shines in trial by fire, question marks over India's top order persist

The Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on Saturday bore witness to the first ODI between India and Pakistan since their World Cup encounter in 2019. It was also the first time the two arch-rivals met in any format since their pulsating clash in Melbourne in last year’s T20 World Cup.

Given the quality of the contest that was on offer in Melbourne, the sheer talent that both teams possess across departments coupled with their storied rivalry, the India-Pakistan fixtures were always going to stand out in the latest edition of the Asia Cup.

However, both players and fans would have been left disappointed at the anti-climactic end to the fixture, the first of potentially three Indo-Pak clashes in the tournament.

India were bowled out for 266 after skipper Rohit Sharma elected to bat in a see-saw innings. Rain played hide-and-seek throughout the afternoon and in the evening before washing the game out for good. Shortly before 10 pm local time, umpires and players shook hands with Pakistan denied a chance to face a single delivery.

The two teams ended up splitting the points, with Pakistan becoming the first team to confirm their place in the Super Fours.

The Men in Blue, meanwhile, will be happy about walking away with a point when the prospect of defeat loomed large at one stage. Especially when the top-order was blown away by yet another sensational phase of fast-bowling from Pakistan.

Asia Cup: IND vs PAK as it happened

Despite the no-result, the Indian batting department learned a few valuable lessons when tested against a world-class pace unit, lessons that will not only come in handy in their pursuit of an eighth continental title, but also in the World Cup that takes place right after.

Another top-order wobble

On Saturday, the trio of Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah managed to put the Men in Blue’s top four to the sword with another stellar display of fast bowling in helpful conditions that made experts wonder if Rohit’s decision to bat first was really such a wise call.

The ‘Hitman’ got off the mark with an aerial flick off Afridi’s bowling that narrowly flew past the fielder at square leg, and would produce an even more exquisite shot in the left-arm pacer’s next over to move to double figures. Just when he was starting to look settled, rain made the first of its multiple appearances on the day.

The break appeared to have favoured Pakistan more than India as Afridi would strike right after resumption of play; he set Rohit up with a couple of outswingers before angling one in that not only beat Indian skipper’s inside edge but also ended up clipping the top of off.

Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi, who was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 4/35, celebrates after dismissing India captain Rohit Sharma. AP

Kohli then got off the mark in style with a trademark cover drive off Shah in the following over. But would face just two more deliveries before chopping the ball onto the stumps while looking to open the face of his bat to guide the ball towards third man. Second strike for Afridi.

Watch: Shaheen bamboozles Rohit, Kohli

Iyer, making his long-awaited comeback into the Indian team, announced himself with two boundaries in three balls from Rauf — driving a full delivery through covers before flicking past mid on. India’s first-choice No 4 candidate, however, perished in Rauf’s next over as he would time a pull impeccably but straight to Fakhar Zaman at mid-wicket for his promising start to come to an abrupt end.

As for Shubman Gill, Rauf helped put him out of his misery by inducing an inside edge onto the stumps, which also appears to have benefited the Indian team. The 23-year-old opener never really got going during his 32-ball knock that yielded just 10 runs and appeared a shadow of the batter that had been scoring centuries for fun earlier this year.

At 66/4, the prospect of getting shot out for less than 200 appeared a strong possibility and given how formidable Pakistan’s top and middle order has looked in recent matches, Pakistan would have backed themselves to chase down a target in that range without much fuss.

Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya, however, had other plans.

Kishan excels in middle-order audition

While questions over their top-order are expected to persist, Kishan and Pandya’s 138-run stand for the fifth wicket that helped the Men in Blue post a competitive target on the board will have resolved some of their doubts over the middle order.

Kishan, making his first appearance against Pakistan, began exhibiting his intent early on by upper-cutting a short, wide delivery from Rauf for a six over the wide third man boundary in his seventh delivery, an upper cut that may have reminded some of Tendulkar’s memorable six off Shoaib Akhtar’s bowling two decades ago.

Pandya joined Kishan after Gill’s departure, and gave him exactly the support that he was looking for to weather the storm, smacking Rauf for a boundary first ball only to play second fiddle to Kishan for a majority of the fifth-wicket stand, an approach that he would somewhat shed after bringing up his half-century.

India wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan and vice-captain Hardik Pandya scored 82 and 87 respectively, and stitched a 138-run fifth-wicket stand that helped India post a competitive total from a shaky position. AP

Kishan feasted mainly on the spin pair of Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz, who proved to be the weak link for the Men in Green along with their fielding on the day, with Nawaz being taken off the attack for good after conceding 16 in his eighth over.

From punishing Shadab for missing his lengths to cutting with authority every time either of the two tried to shorten their length to the southpaw, Kishan exhibited the kind of authority that he did in the West Indies tour, where he collected a half-century in each of the three ODIs. He eventually began tiring after moving into the 80s, and perished while playing a tired shot off a short delivery from Rauf that broke the marathon fifth-wicket stand.

His 81-ball 82, however, did more than just rescue the Indians from the doldrums. It also posed the team leadership an important question. That of the team composition once KL Rahul, who sat out of the Pakistan clash and will also miss the Nepal fixture, returns to full fitness and is available for selection.

Stats: Pakistan pacers create history, Ishan-Hardik stitch record stand

Kishan’s presence in the squad is something of a boon for Rohit and Co. Not only does he act as a back-up keeper to Rahul, who is also donning the gloves only due to Rishabh Pant’s absence, he is also a floater of sorts who is as adept at the top of the order as he is in the middle.

The Men in Blue have had to make some tough decisions of late, which included having to bench Mohammed Shami for Saturday’s game. The way Kishan performed on Saturday and highlighted the fact that he is more than just a back up option, one gets the feeling similar decisions might have to be taken once the Super Fours are in progress.