PAK vs UAE: Saim Ayub's nightmarish run in Asia Cup 2025 continues, records hat-trick of ducks to join unwanted list of Pakistan cricketers; Watch video

Pakistan's star opener Saim Ayub’s duck streak continued in the ongoing Asia Cup 2025. Ayub recorded his third consecutive duck in the Asia Cup 2025 Group A clash between Pakistan and United Aram Emirates (UAE) at the Dubai International stadium on Wednesday, September 17.

Saim Ayub's bat goes cold with third successive duck

Despite a decent run in recent T20Is leading up to the event, the Asia Cup has marked a horror streak for the left-handed opener. Heading into the match against the UAE, Ayub lacked confidence after recording ducks in the two previous games against Oman and India. With high stakes and pressure mounting, he failed to perform, departing for a two-ball duck and giving the UAE an early advantage. It was Zohaib Khan who sent the marching orders to Ayub in the very first over.

This latest failure puts Ayub in an unwanted club, as he becomes only the third Pakistani cricketer to record three or more consecutive ducks in T20Is. He joins Abdullah Shafique, who had four straight ducks between 2020 and 2023, and Mohammad Hafeez, who also failed to score in three consecutive games in 2012.

Ayub's recent duck against the UAE was his eighth in T20Is for Pakistan, placing him in an unwanted category with some of the country's biggest names. This total puts him joint-third on the list, tied with Shahid Afridi, who also had eight ducks but achieved them over 90 innings. Ayub, however, reached this unfortunate milestone in just 44 innings, showing his struggles have been particularly pronounced.

Ayub's difficulties are most evident when playing in the UAE, where he has been dismissed for a duck five times in just 11 games. In the Gulf country, he averages a meager 16.09, and his strike rate drops to 122.06, well below his career average of 135.54. Furthermore, this was his fifth duck in 2025, tying him with India's Sanju Samson for the most ducks in a calendar year. Samson reached his total of five in 13 T20Is last year.

Pakistan's playing XI:

Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Haris(w), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha(c), Khushdil Shah, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed

United Arab Emirates' Playing XI:

Alishan Sharafu, Muhammad Waseem(c), Asif Khan, Muhammad Zohaib, Harshit Kaushik, Rahul Chopra(w), Dhruv Parashar, Haider Ali, Muhammad Rohid Khan, Simranjeet Singh, Junaid Siddique