The Super 4 stages of the Asia Cup 2023 have started with Pakistan beating Bangladesh by 7 wickets. Their pacers went through the Bangladesh’s batting lineup. We have seen some interesting contests in the tournament so far. And we have our 4 teams for the super 4 stages. Today, we will talk about the two possible teams that can reach the Asia Cup 2023 finals this time. We will analyze the teams as well and see who would be the two favourites for the Asia Cup 2023 finals.
Will Sri Lanka get the home advantage?
Sri Lanka has done well to reach the Super 4s. They won both of their games against Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Against Bangladesh, they chased down a target of 165 on a tricky wicket.
Sri Lanka avoids Afghanistan’s scare
Sri Lanka survived Afghanistan’s scare as Afghanistan came very close to winning the game against them in the required overs. Afghanistan needs to chase Sri Lanka’s target of 291 in 37.1 overs. Even if they managed to score 295 or 297 in 38.1 overs, they could have qualified for the supers 4s. And Sri Lanka will get out of the Asia Cup 2023. But Sri Lanka won that game by 2 runs in the end.
Will Sri Lanka reach the Asia Cup 2023 finals?
Fewer chances for Sri Lanka this time. They have a very good team. But they lack the services of some of their key players like D Chameera, W Hasaranga, Dilshan Madhushanka, etc. Their bowling options look depleted with those injuries.
Other teams have much more balance as compared to Sri Lanka. But they are the current champions of the Asia Cup. They will look to defend their title this time.
Pakistan could be one of the team
We have picked Pakistan as one of the teams to be in the Asia Cup 2023 finals. They have a very good balanced side in the tournament. And they have done well so far and show the signs of a big team.
Pace attack – a strength of Pakistan
Pakistan’s pace attack has helped them to win two games in the Asia Cup 2023 so far. In the first game against Nepal, they bowled the opposition out for just 104 runs and won the game by 238 runs.
Against India, all the wickets were taken by the pacers. Pakistani pacers were all over Team India with Shaheen and Haris looking good. Pandya and Kishan put on a 138-run stand for the 5th wicket. But as soon as the pacers back, India crumbled again and bowled out for 266.
Pakistan won its first Super 4 game against Bangladesh and the Pacers again played a very crucial role.
A decent batting show so far
Although Pakistan’s slight weak link is their batting. But they have a very good top 3 with captain Babar Azam leading from the front. The two openers, Fakhar and Imam also have very good batting prowess. And with the experienced Iftikhar Ahmed also having runs under his belt, Pakistan are ready to be in the Asia Cup 2023 finals.
We have picked Pakistan as firm favourites to reach the finals. Let’s see how they go about their business.
Will Bangladesh surprise us?
Bangladesh Cricket are still looking for their first-ever title in the Asia Cups. They came closer in 2016 and 2018 when they reached the Asia Cup finals. But both times Team India defeated Bangladesh and their dream remains.
Injury concerns for Bangladesh
Bangladesh had already lost Tamim Iqbal and Litton Das before the start of the Asia Cup 2023 due to injury. And now, their highest run scorer Najmul Hossain Shanto also ruled out of the tournament due to injury. Their batting looks less threatening as we saw in the first game of the Super 4s against Pakistan.
Bangladesh’s chances are looking bleak to reach in the Asia Cup 2023 finals. But they will go hard in the next two remaining games against India and Sri Lanka to be in the race for Super 4s. Let’s see if they can make it to the Asia Cup 2023 finals or not.
India – a firm favourite to reach the finals
India always starts as favourites whether it is a World Cup or the Asia Cup nowadays. They have a much more balanced side in terms of both, bowling and batting. The Indian batters’ credentials are far better than the other 3 teams in the Super 4s.
India’s bowling also has wicket-takers in the team. The only headache the Indian team has is whether to play an all-rounder (either Shardul or Axar) or to play three out-and-out pacers in Shami, Siraj, and Bumrah. They prefer an all-rounder in that spot generally.
So who will be the top 2 teams in the Asia Cup 2023 finals?
We have picked India and Pakistan as the two teams to be in the finals. Both have a very strong side and have the potential to be the winners.
NOTE: These are just predictions on the basis of the team’s analysis and the performances. Who knows whether Bangladesh or Sri Lanka might surprise us?
What are your predictions? Thank you for reading. Keep following us for the latest updates.
