India vs Hong Kong, Asia Cup 2022 Highlights: India beat Hong Kong by 40 runs to enter Super Fours

The Indian skipper, Rohit Sharma says that they batted pretty well to start with and got to a good score and bowled decently as well but it could have been better. On being asked about Suryakumar Yadav's knock, Rohit says that he is short of words and every now and then SKY comes up with something special and it was very pleasing to watch and he can play all around the park as well. Says that most of the guys are ready to bat whenever they are required and they will look for the right matchups to tinker with the batting order.

That's it then from this game but the action in the Asia Cup 2022 continues on Thursday, the 1st of September in Dubai as a do-or-die clash between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh awaits. The winner will get a place in the Super Fours and the loser will have to catch a flight back home. That game will begin at 7.30 pm IST (2 pm GMT) but you can join us in advance for the early build-up. Cheers!

Suryakumar Yadav (68* off 26 balls) is the Player of the Match. Says that some of his shots are predetermined but most of the time, you have to bat in the present. Shares that the pitch was on the slower side and he wanted to express himself and up the tempo of the innings. Adds that you have to be flexible and ready to play at any position, and he has been doing it for some time now.

Nizakat Khan, the captain of Hong Kong, says that they started well with the ball, until the 13th over and they fielded well also, but slipped at the death. Praises the knock of Suryakumar Yadav. Adds that it's a big chance for them to play in this tournament and he is proud of his boys. Tells that they will sit down and look at their death bowling. Hopes to improve on all their shortcomings.

In the 26 balls he faced against Hong Kong on Wednesday, Suryakumar Yadav demonstrated all the right things about his T20 batting while exposing everything that is not quite right with India’s top-three. Surya walked out to bat at the end of the 13th over with the scoreboard reading 94/2 after KL Rahul went for a 39-ball 35 and Virat Kohli still striking just about run-a-ball. When he walked off unbeaten with 68 runs to his name and Virat Kohli by his side with a 59 off 44, he had propelled India to 192/2. In doing so, Surya had put the game well beyond the spirited Hong Kong team who finished with 152/5.

Babar Hayat (41) comes up for a quick chat. Says that they needed a good Powerplay and that's why he was playing his shots. Adds that the way they have been playing of late, they did well. Feels their bowling and fielding were good and mentions that they have a lot of positives to take from this match, like their batting in the Powerplay and the bowling efforts of Yasim Murtaza and Ehsan Khan. Shares that the pitch was very tricky, especially against the spinners.

Stay tuned for the presentation ceremony...

Earlier in the game, Nizakat Khan won the toss and put India in to bat first. Hong Kong did manage to keep the run rate in check for a while but failed to pick up wickets regularly. Their spinners, Ehsan Khan and then Yasim Murtaza in the middle phase bowled really well against a top-class opposition. Their pacers apart from Ayush Shukla were taken to the cleaners towards the end by Virat Kohli and especially by Suryakumar Yadav who hit six fours and six maximums to power India to a big score. Chasing a big total on a not-so-easy pitch for batting, the Hong Kong innings never received an injection of momentum and they were always behind the required rate. A couple of batters did well but the Indian bowlers did reasonably well to get their team over the line. Let's now have a listen to what Babar Hayat has to say about the game...

STAT: First time in 14 night T20Is in Dubai, a team has successfully defended a target.

India were the favourite in this one and they will be reasonably pleased with their performance on the whole. A couple of great innings with the bat and wickets at the right time have seen them get their second win on the trot. All the pacers picked up a wicket each but both Avesh Khan and Arshdeep Singh proved to be expensive, with the former conceding in excess of 50 runs. The spinners controlled the game well in the middle phase and Ravindra Jadeja got a wicket as well along with a run out. All in all, a solid showing from the Men in Blue but they will be aware that they need to finetune a few things if they are to go all the way.

Hong Kong had a lot of belief coming into this game and probably for the first half an hour or so looked good on the field. Their inability to pick up regular wickets cost them at the death and their batters were simply no match for the opposition bowlers. They did start well with the bat with Babar Hayat laying down the platform. By the time he fell, their reliable top three had all perished and only Kinchit Shah in the middle phase was able to muster up a few runs. Scott McKechnie and Zeeshan Ali did get away with a few boundaries towards the end but the game was already done and dusted by then.

A comprehensive win more or less in the end for India and they have sealed their spot in the Super Fours. It was their power-hitting towards the end that set up this victory and the bowlers did a near clinical job of defending the big total.

It's all over! India (192/2) beat Hong Kong (152/5) by 40 runs to enter Super Fours. India topped Group A with two wins in two games.

Arshdeep Singh conceded 12 runs in the final over, but with Hong Kong needing 53, it ended with a comprehensive win for India. India defeated Hong Kong by 40 runs to register their second win in a row as they topped the group. India are through to the Super Fours with the victory. Overall a good game for India, but the two young pacers Arshdeep and Avesh Khan had a tough night today, conceding 97 runs for two wickets in their 8 overs.

Arshdeep Singh to Scott McKechnie, A low full toss around off, Scott McKechnie slices it through cover-point for a single. That's it, India win by 40 runs and have progressed to the Super Fours.

Arshdeep Singh to Zeeshan Ali, Back bowling full tosses, around off, Ali goes back and hits it through cover-point for a run.

Arshdeep Singh to Zeeshan Ali, FOUR! Aahhh...nothing wrong with the delivery this time. Arshdeep at last nails his yorker around off, Zeeshan Ali steps back and squeezes it out through backward point for a boundary. 150 up for Hong Kong, a bit of achievement for them.