Can India still qualify for Asia Cup 2022 final? Here are all scenarios explained
1) Rohit-led India have lost the plot in Super 4
Rohit-led India have lost the plot in Super 4. After topping Group A -- beating Pakistan and Hong Kong respectively -- the defending champions now have one foot on the flight back home. They went down to arch-rivals Pakistan in a rematch during both sides' Super 4 opener but all hell broke loose with defeat to Sri Lanka by six wickets on Tuesday (September 06).
India are breathing in the continental tournament but only with a glimmer of hope.
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3) Pakistan defeats can bring India's campaign alive
Pakistan's twin defeats can bring India's campaign alive at the Asia Cup. The Babar Azam-led side is favourites to take the remaining slot for the final. They have two more games to play -- versus Afghanistan (on Wednesday) and Sri Lanka (on Friday). A win in any of their remaining fixtures will be curtains for Rohit & Co. (and Afghanistan) in the multi-nation tournament.
Nonetheless, if the Men in Green lose both games -- by a big margin versus the Lankans and a relatively-close margin against the Afghans -- it will keep India's hopes alive. The Men in Blue will, however, have to win their last game at any cost.
4) India need to thrash Afghanistan
India need to thrash Afghanistan by all means on Thursday evening (September 08) in Dubai. Before that, they need a big favour from Mohammad Nabi & Co.
India will keep a tab on the Afghanistan-Pakistan face-off on Wednesday and hope for the former to go past their arch-rivals. If that happens, India will breathe for another day but will have to eradicate its flaws and beat Afghanistan by a convincing margin.
5) Will depleted India reach the final?
At this time, the picture doesn't look bright for Team India. They have competed hard but repeated mistakes have pushed them closer to the brink of elimination.
After the SL defeat, Rohit said at the post-match presentation, "We just ended up on the wrong side, as simple as that. We could have capitalized on the first half of our innings. We fell 10-15 runs short. The second half wasn't good for us. The guys who were out in the middle can learn about what shots can be played. These things can happen. Losses like these will make us understand what works as a team."
He added, "Since the last World Cup, we haven't lost too many games. These games will teach us. We wanted to put ourselves under pressure in the Asia Cup. We are still looking for answers."
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