Pakistan Vs Bangladesh Asia Cup Match 4th March 2014

In the 8th match of Asia Cup 2014 defending champion Pakistan will take on runners up of last Asia Cup Bangladesh in Sher-e-Bangla Stadium on 4th March 2014. Match will start at 1 PM local time. This will be 4th match of Pakistan and 3rd for the Bangladesh in the Tournament.

Pakistan is a much stronger team as compared to Bangladesh and In history Pakistan has lost just one ODI match from Bangladesh that was in 1999 Cricket World Cup otherwise Pakistan always defeated the Bangla tigers. in Asia Cup 2012 Pakistan beaten them twice. Pakistan also beaten them in the Interesting final match by 2 runs.

This time Bangladesh will be trying hard to settle the scores of last Asia cup final but it will not be easy for them to beat Pakistan which has a very dangerous bowling attack and their Batsmen also performs pretty well on Subcontinent pitches.

last time Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Ul Hasan performed pretty well against Pakistan due to which they came so close to victory so this time as well there will be high hopes from these two players. but Cricket is not the game of one or two men. to win matches whole team of 11 players need to perform together with passion.

recently Pakistan and Bangladesh also had political tensions after which ACC was thinking to shift the tournament out of Bangladesh but later on ACC decided to keep it in Bangladesh.

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Afghanistan Vs Sri Lanka Asia Cup Match 3rd March 2014

In the seventh match of Asia Cup The young Afghanistan team will face Sri Lanka on 3rd March 2014 In Mirpur. It will be 3rd match of both sides in the Tournament. Afghanistan will take on Pakistan in their first match and on Bangladesh in their second. Sri Lanka will also play their first match against Pakistan and second against World Champions India.

Afghanistan's target would be at least winning one match in the tournament by defeating Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka or India. Afghan coach Kabir Khan is very hopeful that his team will show a good performance on their first arrival in the Asia Cup. so  far Afghan team has played 22 ODI International matches so this Tournament will give them much more experience before next year's World Cup.

Afghan captain Nawroz Mangal said recently that our performance is Improving as we are playing more and more International Cricket. Asia Cup is a really great chance for us to Improve our performance.

Match against Sri Lanka will be not easy for Afghanistan because Sri Lankan team is equipped with great players like Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Lasith Malinga and Angelo Mathews.

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Pakistan Vs India Asia Cup Match 2nd March 2014

This is my fifth post previewing the matches of Asia Cup 2014 that is starting from 25th February In Bangladesh. This Post is the most Important one because It is about the biggest match of the Tournament perhaps even bigger than the Final. Yes i am talking about Pakistan Vs India Match that will be played on 2nd March In Mirpur at 14:00 local time.

This is the match all the cricket fans will be following very closely. Both sides have really good players who can turn the game around. on paper Indian teams seems more stronger than Pakistan specially Its batting line is pretty good but defending champions Pakistan cannot be underrated by any means.

Pakistan has bowlers like Saeed Ajmal, Abdul Hafeez, Umar Gul and Junaid Khan who can trouble any batting side of the world. Pakistan's batting side is a little bit weak but against India Pakistani batsmen also performs well most of time and reason for this might be weak bowling of India. However Ashwin and Jadeja are two good spinners in India side.

I think the result of match will very much depend on if Pakistani bowlers will be able to contain Indian batsmen specially Virat Kohli. In Asia cup 2012 Kohli played historic Inning of 183 runs against Pakistan due to which India got victory despite Pakistan made a big score.

So like always Its going to be a match of Pakistani bowlers and Indian Batsman mainly.

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Umar Gul Fully Prepared For Asia Cup

Pakistani fast bowler and master of deadly Yorkers Umar Gul is fully prepared to give tough time to Batsmen of other Asian Teams in Asia Cup 2014. Umar Gul has said that I am fully prepared for the Asia Cup and have recovered fully from my Injury.

Right arm fast bowler is doing tough practice of 4 to 5 hours on daily basis. He is also time in th gym to keep fitness. In upcoming Asia Cup and T20 World Cup Umar Gul will play a really Important role along with Junaid Khan In absence of Tall Mohammad Irfan who is out due to Injury.

Bowling is considered real strength of Pakistani team and mostly Pakistan wins matches due to its bowlers. Pakistan's batting is not as strong. In Asia Cup as well Pakistani bowlers will have to show Impressive performance to beat teams like Sri Lanka and India. Spinners Boom Boom, Professor and Magician will also have to play their part along with fast bowlers.

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Waqar Younis Might Be Coach of Pakistan For Asia Cup 2014

Two years Contract of Dav Whatmore as coach of Pakistan Cricket team is over recently and series against Sri Lanka In UAE was his last one. Now Pakistan Is looking for a new coach just when two Important Cricket Tournaments are only one month away. I am talking About Asia Cup 2014 and T20 World Cup.

According to media reports Waqar Younis Is likely to become the new Coach of Pakistan Cricket team. PCB has already made a committee which will find a coach for Pakistan. Waqar Younis also remain coach of Pakistan in the past and in 2011 he left as head coach due to family Issues.

the appointment of a good head coach is very Important because Cricket World Cup 2015 is just a year away and a good coach will play Important role for preparations of the WC.

Waqar Younis was a great bowler and captain of Pakistan. He also has experience of being Coach in the past so making him coach again will be a good decision. Pakistan has always performed better under local coaches Instead of foreign coaches.

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Bangladesh Vs Afghanistan Asia Cup Match 1st March 2014

In the fifth match of Asia Cup 2014 two weak teams Bangladesh and Afghanistan will take on each other In Fatullah Cricket Stadium. Bangladesh were the runner ups of previous Asia Cup that was also played in Bangladesh and this time they will be trying hard to win.

For Afghanistan Its first participation in Asia cup so they will also be looking to make it historic by at least winning few matches in the Tournament. They will have a great chance to beat Bangladesh as compared to other teams because Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka are much stronger teams. Bangladesh is also not a bad team but they have some weak points due to which they are beatable.

But beating Bangladesh at their home will not be easy at all. Afghanistan will have to play with a strategy. Getting wickets of Tamim and Shakib early will also be Important for them.

We can expect a good competition between both sides. If we talk about chances. I will give 60% to Bangladesh and 40% to Afghanistan.

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Asia Cup Wallpapers

Asia Cup has proved to be one of the most exciting and most awaited Cricket Tournament specially by the Asian fans. It takes place after every two years. this year its starting from 25th February in Bangladesh.

Here are some Asia Cup Wallpapers that you can download:

Pakistani players celebrating 2012 Asia Cup final.

Misbah celebrates after taking catch of Bangladeshi batsman.

Pakistani team with trophy of Asia Cup 2012.

Umar Gul Celebrating after taking a wicket.

Tamim Iqbal after scoring 50 against Pakistan.

Misbah picks up the winning the trophy.

Virat Kohli scores century against Pakistan.

Logo of Asia Cup.

Sachin celebrates on completing his 100 centuries.

Bangladeshi Batsman plays stroke against Umar Gul.

Misbah Ul Haq playing a shot against Zaheer Khan.

Bangladeshi players celebrating wicket of MS Dhoni.

Jayawardene playing a beautiful shot.

Asia Cup trophy in Ground.

Umar Gul, Misbah, Umer Akmal and Professor with winning trophy.

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India vs Sri Lanka Asia Cup 28th February 2014

In this post I will be previewing the 4th and a very Important ODI match of the Asia Cup 2014 In which two strong teams of South Asia Sri Lanka and India will be going hard at each other. This match will be played on Friday 28th February in  Fatullah at 14 Local time.

If we see the history of Asia Cup you will find that most of times India and Sri Lanka have played the Finals against each other and most of times India was winner in the finals. It is a Indication that both of these teams always performs well against the other teams in Asia Cup and reaches the Final. however last time none of these two teams were able to reach the final. Instead Pakistan and Bangladesh played final which was won by Pakistan.

Sri Lanka has several young players in their side while seniors like Sangakkara, Jayawardene and Dilshan also their to take the responsibility. Sri Lankan captain Angelo Mathews would desperately want to win a big tournament in his captaincy for Sri Lanka.

For India and Sri Lanka match I will give 55% chances to India and 45% chances to Sri Lanka. India has edge due to its strong batting line and Bangladesh's conditions will support them.  

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Afghanistan vs Pakistan Asia Cup ODI 27th February 2014

The third ODI of Asia cup 2014 will be played between Pakistan and Inexperienced Afghanistan on Thursday 27th February 2014 in Fatullah. It will be first participation of Afghanistan in the Asia cup and they will be looking to do a good start by at least giving tough time to Pakistan if not beating them.

What Afghanistan lacks is experience and facilities otherwise they have lots of talent and passion to play they cricket and we have seen this in the past. they have won many matches and also given tough time to teams like India and Pakistan. they have also qualified for the Cricket World cup 2015.

Pakistan will be looking to give no chance to Afghanistan to get upper hand in this match because winning this match will be really Important for them for reaching the Final. Pakistan has pretty good bowling but their batting can get into trouble anytime and Afghanistan will also try to trouble Pakistani batsmen to make some chances in the match.

Afghanistan has following players in their squad:

Afsar Zazai
Asghar Stanikzai
Dawlat Zadran
Fazal Niazai
Gulbadin Naib
Hamid Hassan
Hamza Hotak
Izatullah Dawlatzai
Karim Sadiq
Mirwais Ashraf
Mohammad Nabi
Mohammad Shahzad
Najibullah Zadran
Nawroz Mangal
Noor Ali Zadran
Rahmat Shah
Samiullah Shenwari
Shabir Noori
Shafiqullah
Shapoor Zadran

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Bangladesh vs India Asia Cup ODI 26th February 2014

Asia Cup 2014 will start with the big match of defending Champion Pakistan and Sri Lanka on 25th February about Which I written In one of my previous post. the second match will be played between host team Bangladesh and World Champion India on 26th February In Fatullah.

It will be a Important match for both Bangladesh and India to progress ahead in the Tournament with a good start. On paper India is a much stronger team than Bangladesh but Bangladeshi tigers are very capable of defeating India. In fact they defeated India in previous Asia Cup match If you remember.

Bangladeshi team is having many talented players which will give India a really tough time. There will be lots of hopes with Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Ul Hasan. after arrival of Saqlain Mushtaq as a coach the bowling of Bangladesh has also very much Improved. they also have home advantage.

On other hand India will be having high hopes with their batsmen like Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni. bowlers like Ashwin, Shami and Jadeja can also trouble the opposition.

So according to me chances for Bangladesh vs India Asia Cup ODI are 60% India and 40% Bangladesh.

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Which Team Is Hot Favorite?

Defending Champion Pakistan?

World Champion India?

Host Team Bangladesh?

Sri Lanka

Inexperienced Afghanistan?

Which of these five teams is hot favorite to win the Asia Cup 2014? This is a question which every Cricket fan is asking from expert now a days and all of them have different opinion on this. Cricket is a unpredictable game and we often see big upsets happening. Just take example of last Asia Cup where Bangladesh defeated India and Sri Lanka and reached the Final of Asia Cup 2012. In the final they were short by just 2 runs.

So making a prediction Is really not easy about it however we can analyze the chances of different teams one by one.

First lets take a look at Pakistan. As we all know Pakistan is the most unpredictable team. they can defeat the strongest team a day and can lose to weakest team next day. however their combination is good for this Asia Cup. They have good bowlers and batsmen who are very capable of giving good performance specially on Subcontinent pitches. So Pakistan has a huge chance of winning the Asia Cup.

Now lets talk about the World Champion India. India recently lost the series In South Africa but their performance at home is brilliant. pitches of Bangladesh will not be much different from pitches of India so we can expect good performance from Indian Batsmen. India's weak point is bowling and If Indian bowlers also shows good performance then they will be unbeatable during the Asia Cup 2014.

The third good team is Sri Lanka. they can also win the tournament but their chances are less than Pakistan and India.

Bangladesh has home advantage and they have good some really good players such as Shakib al Hasan and Tamim Iqbal who can turn the game around. they were also runner ups of last Asia Cup. It will be hard for them but its not Impossible to win Asia Cup.

the last team Afghanistan who is participating for the first time In Asia Cup has not much chances to win it and reason for this is their inexperience. they can give tough time to other teams but I don't think they have any chance of winning the tournament.

So this was my small review of different team's chances of winning the Asia Cup. lets wait and see who wins it.

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Pakistan Vs Sri Lanka Asia Cup ODI 25th February 2014

Asia Cup 2014 will start from 25th February 2014 In Bangladesh In which 5 Asian Cricket teams will compete with each other to become Cricket champion of Asia. Opening match of the tournament will be played between defending champions Pakistan and talented Sri Lanka In Fatullah.

Opening match of any tournament Is always very Important for any team because It sets the tune of a team to start the winning journey and then reach the Final and win it. Recently Pakistan and Sri Lanka has played series in UAE where Pakistan won ODI series and Test series was drawn by 1-1 between the two sides.

Sri Lanka has a history of performing well in group matches of big tournaments but they lose mostly In the Finals. So they will be trying to do a good start and then teach the Final and win it but for that they will have to beat the unpredictable Pakistan.

Pakistan will be one of the favorite team to win this Asia cup and there are several reasons for this. Pakistan has won two Asia Cups in the past and both of them were played in Bangladesh. This time again this tournament is going to be played in Bangladesh. Second reason is good bowling and batting performances by the youngsters in recent series.

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History of Previous Asia Cup Tournaments

Asia Cup is a International ODI Cricket Tournament which takes place after every two years and Asian Cricket Playing nations participates In it. It is organized by the Asian Cricket Council ACC. the first tournament taken place in 1984 in Sharjah UAE. India was its winner while Sri Lanka was runner up team. so far eleven tournaments have taken place and India was winner 5 times.

the second tournament taken place in 1986 In Sri Lanka and this time Sri Lanka won the final against Pakistan. third cup taken place in Bangladesh in 1988 where India beaten Sri Lanka in final by 6 wickets.

In fourth and fifth Asia cup as well India was the winner and Sri Lanka was the runner up. in sixth Asia Cup in 1997 Sri Lanka finally managed to beat India in the final by 8 wickets.

Next cup was played In Bangladesh in 2000 where Pakistan won the title for the first time by beating Sri Lanka by 39 runs. Cups of 2004 and 2008 where won by Sri Lanka and India was runner up both times. In 2010 the tenth Asia Cup was played which India won by once again beating Sri Lanka in the finals by 81 runs.

In 2012 Asia Cup for the first time Bangladesh showed good performance to reach the finals by they were lost to Pakistan by just 2 runs. now we are very close to Tournament of 2014 which is once again going to be played in Bangladesh. Afghanistan is going to play it for the first time.

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Big Match of Asia Cup India Vs Pakistan Will Be Played On 2nd March 2014

I am one of those persons who hardly miss any Cricket match and this is happening since my childhood but like any other cricket fan whenever Pakistan and India plays against each other the emotions goes high, heart beat increases, passion goes up. When these two historic rivals plays against each other it becomes more a war than sports. Pakistan and India will also be facing each other In Asia Cup.

Both teams will take on each other in the sixth match of the tournament on 2nd March In Mirpur Stadium Bangladesh. Dhoni and Misbah Eleven will try hard to defeat the opponent in the fifty over game. the games of between these two rivals are always 50% 50% and any team who plays well on the day can win it.

Pakistan's strong point will be bowling like always but their batsmen can also perform well because Indian bowling is not much strong. On other hand India's strength will be batting. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, M.S Dhoni,  Shikhar Dhawan will try to go hard at Pakistani Bowlers right from the start.

If Mohammad Irfan and Umar Gul will be part of Pakistani squad then the strength of Pakistani bowling will increase even more because spinners like Saeed Ajmal, Professor and Boom Boom are already there to take down the opponent batting line. 

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Afghanistan Will Play In Asia Cup 2014 For The First Time

From last few years we have seen several new cricket teams performing well specially Ireland and Afghanistan. Afghanistan has showed some good performances and lost matches against big teams after coming very close. Now for the first Afghanistan Is also Included In Asia Cup 2014 and they will be participating as the fifth team along with India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in the event.

ACC has made this announcement after consulting with other Asian Cricket boards. Afghanistan Cricket board is happy on this announcement of the ACC. Afghanistan Cricket Board Chairman Dr Noor Mohammad Murad has thanked ACC for Including Afghan team in the Asia Cup.

Afghanistan has got some really good players in their team who can give tough time to opponents and we have also seen this in last T20 World Cup. they might not be able to win Asia Cup but they will certainly learn a lot from it which will help them in future events like World Cup 2015.

Asia Cup is starting from February 25th In Bangladesh where Pakistan will be defending the title as winners of previous Asia Cup 2012.

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Asia Cup 2012 In Pictures

Asia Cup takes place after every 2 year In one of the Asian Cricket playing Nation and all Asia Cricket teams takes part in It. 2012 Asia cup taken place in Bangladesh and Pakistan was winner of it. Pakistan defeated Bangladesh in the final by just 2 runs to win the cup.

2012 Cups is Remember able due to several reasons like amazing performance of Bangladesh, 100 centuries of Sachin, defeat of India by Bangladesh and emotional moments at end of Final.

Here are some of the Pics of Asia Cup 2012:

Shakib Al Hassan crying after defeat in Final.

Abdul Hafeez plays stroke against Bangladeshi bowler.

Bangladeshi players celebrated after defeating India.

Bangladeshi players got emotional after close final defeat.

Sachin On completing his 100 centuries.

Pakistani Captain Misbah and Cheema celebrates on a getting a wicket.

Virat Kohli scores 183 against Pakistan.

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Pakistan Will Participate In Asia Cup

As the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) has announced that Asia Cup 2014 will still be played in Bangladesh the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has confirmed that Pakistan will still be participating In the event starting from 25th of February. After politician unrest and security problems in Bangladesh there were rumors that the event might be shifted somewhere else. It was said that if the event takes place in Bangladesh Pakistan might not play as it can be a security risk.

Pakistani team will reach Bangladesh on 22nd February and they will be playing opening match of Asia cup against Sri Lanka on 25th February In Fatullah. Pakistan's security officer recently visited Bangladesh to check the security situation and he was satisfied after which Pakistan confirmed the participation.

Cricket fans are happy with the announcement of PCB because Pakistan are defending champions of Asia Cup and without their participation the event would have become really dull.

Pakistan are defending champions of Asia and they beaten Bangladesh in Final of historic Asia Cup 2012 when Bangladeshi players started crying after losing the match just by 2 runs.

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Asia Cup 2014 Fixtures

Like Millions others I am also a crazy Cricket fan and I also get excited when a big cricket event comes near specially In which history rivals Pakistan and India also have to face each other. Asia Cup 2014 is now just around the corner. Asia Cup 2014 Fixtures also announced recently. The Cup is going to be played in Bangladesh for the second consecutive time. previously It also taken place in Bangladesh during 2012 that was won by Pakistan.

Here are also the Asia Cup 2014 Fixtures:

So get prepared to see Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan In the action.

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Asia Cup 2014 Schedule

Asian Cricket Council (ACC) has finally reached on this decision that the Asia Cup 2014 will be organized In Bangladesh and It will not be shifted to Sri Lanka Or UAE over the security concerns and Political unrest In the Bangladesh that is going on from several months. Asia Cup 2014 Schedule is also announced by the ACC along with this announcement.

The cup will take place from 25th February 2014 to 8th of March 2014 In different cities of Bangladesh. For the first time In history we will also see Afghanistan's team in action during the Asia Cup. Previously four teams Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh takes parts In this cup that is played every 2 year.

Asia Cup 2014 Schedule is as follow:

25th February: Pakistan v Sri Lanka

26th February: Bangladesh v India

27th February: Afghanistan v Pakistan

28th February: India v Sri Lanka

1st March: Bangladesh v Afghanistan

2nd March: India v Pakistan

3rd March: Afghanistan v Sri Lanka

4th March: Bangladesh v Pakistan

5th March: Afghanistan v India

6th March: Bangladesh v Sri Lanka

8th March: Final, Mirpur

Pakistan will be defending the title as they won Asia cup in 2012 by beating Bangladesh on their land.

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