Pakistan vs UAE match began after an hour-long delay
Men In Green stuttered with bat before Shaheen Shah Afridi's cameo took them to 146
Afridi, spinners combined to bowl UAE out for 105
Pakistan recovered from a mid-game stutter to coast to a 41-run victory over United Arab Emirates in the 10th match of Asia Cup 2025, at the Dubai International cricket Stadium on Wednesday (September 17).
With the win, Salman Ali Agha's team joined India in the Super Fours stage, and the arch-rivals will face off at the same venue on September 21. The hosts, on the other hand, were knocked out from the competition.
It was seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi, who first smashed an unbeaten 29 off 14 balls to prop up what still otherwise looked a modest total of 146 for 9 for Pakistan. He then claimed two wickets, as did Haris Rauf and Abrar Ahmed, as the Pakistani spinners choked the hosts before bowling them out for 105.
Afridi was thus named the Player of the Match for the all-round show, and he later said he was happy to "perform for the team in a winning cause".
Earlier, United Arab Emirates won the toss and elected to field first against Pakistan.
Pakistan Vs UAE, Asia Cup 2025: Playing XIs
Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Haris (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha (c), Khushdil Shah, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed
UAE: Alishan Sharafu, Muhammad Waseem (c), Asif Khan, Muhammad Zohaib, Harshit Kaushik, Rahul Chopra (wk), Dhruv Parashar, Haider Ali, Muhammad Rohid Khan, Simranjeet Singh, Junaid Siddique
The fate of the match hung in uncertainty for several hours, as reports of Pakistan boycotting the clash began surfacing. The game was eventually delayed by an hour as Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials deliberated on the matter.
PCB eventually relented, with chairman Mohsin Naqvi posting on X (formerly Twitter): "We have asked the Pakistan team to depart for the Dubai Cricket Stadium. Further details to follow."
The uncertainty stemmed from the fallout of a controversial incident involving match referee Andy Pycroft and the Suryakumar Yadav-led Indian team, which refused to shake hands with Pakistani players before and after their earlier group clash, citing respect for victims of the Pahalgam terror attack and Indian Armed Forces.
Pakistan Vs UAE Squads
Pakistan Squad: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Haris (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha (c), Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Abrar Ahmed, Hussain Talat, Hasan Ali, Khushdil Shah, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jr, and Salman Mirza.
UAE Squad: Alishan Sharafu, Muhammad Waseem (c), Asif Khan, Muhammad Zohaib, Harshit Kaushik, Rahul Chopra (wk), Dhruv Parashar, Haider Ali, Muhammad Rohid Khan, Muhammad Jawadullah, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Aryansh Sharma, Matiullah Khan, Ethan DSouza, Simranjeet Singh, and Saghir Khan.
