In Multan, the Asia Cup 2023 opener against host nation Pakistan and Nepal had a very poor turnout. Notably, the Pakistan Cricket Board holds the hosting rights for any major competition for the first time in many years, however the number of spectators has not been particularly high. Notably, the host country has not yet disclosed the official attendance, although images and videos show the stadium to be empty.
Babar Azam, the captain of Pakistan, chose to bat first after winning the toss in the game.
The goal would be to record a high total against a very weak team and give their batters the edge before the key Multan Cricket Stadium match against archrival India on September 2 in Sri Lanka.
A complete empty Stadium in Multan. pic.twitter.com/OD0CUMJ4YF
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) August 30, 2023
Fascinatingly, Babar Azam made it clear before the game that they would not be taking Nepal lightly and would instead be concentrating on winning. Babar acknowledges that there is some pressure because the Men in Green are now the top-ranked side in one-day international cricket following their recent 3-0 victory over Afghanistan. However, he noted that pressure is necessary to get things started.
Nepal, on the other side, is competing in their first-ever Asia Cup. They were granted ODI status in 2018 and have played some extremely good cricket in just five years. They will be aiming to shock the field in the current tournament. Along with Karan KC and Sandeep Lamichhane, the captain Rohit Paudel will be crucial.
In the meantime, Karan delivered the opening blow to the home team by taking the crucial wicket of Fakhar Zaman. The 33-year-old is going through a difficult time right now because he struggled to capitalize on his chances throughout the three-match series against Afghanistan, and even in the first game against Nepal, he managed only 14 runs. Imam-ul-Haq and skipper Babar Azam will therefore be eager to provide some stability for the home team following the initial heartbreak.
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