Opener Abhishek Sharma delivered a spectacular performance, scoring a rapid half-century as India defeated UAE by seven wickets to secure their place in the semifinals of the Emerging Teams Asia Cup on Monday. This victory marks India's second win in the tournament, following their narrow seven-run triumph over traditional rivals Pakistan in their first match.
Abhishek made a quickfire 58 runs off just 24 balls, and Ayush Badoni wrapped up the chase by hitting a six and a four, leading India to victory with 55 balls remaining against a target of 108. While Abhishek’s innings included five fours and four sixes, captain Tilak Varma fell short of a big score, contributing 21 runs from 18 balls.
UAE opted to bat first but struggled, managing only 107 runs in 16.5 overs. Their decision backfired early, as they lost both openers—Mayank Kumar (10) and Aryansh Sharma (1)—within the first two overs. Seamer Rasikh Salam made a significant impact, taking three wickets in his opening over and leaving UAE reeling at 40 for 5 during the power play.
Salam's impressive bowling earned him the Player of the Match award with figures of 3/15, while Ramandeep Singh also played a key role, taking 2/7 as India wrapped up UAE's innings with more than three overs to spare.
UAE's innings steadied briefly thanks to a 41-run partnership between skipper Basil Hameed (22 off 12 balls) and Rahul Chopra (50 off 50 balls) before Abhishek dismissed Hameed, catching him off his own bowling. Chopra's efforts were crucial in helping UAE surpass the 100-run mark.
With this win, India tops Group B with four points and will face hosts Oman in their final group match on Wednesday.
