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India will lock horns with Nepal in the fifth match of the Asia Cup 2023. The battle will take place at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on Monday (September 4) and is a must-win clash for both sides. Nepal suffered a defeat at the hands of Pakistan in their previous game, while India’s last match at the same venue was abandoned due to rain.
Despite rain playing spoilsport in the India-Pakistan match, Ishan Kishan was the standout player for the Men in Blue and scored under-pressure 82 runs from 81 deliveries. He was well supported by Hardik Pandya, who contributed significantly with 87 runs from 90 balls. On the other hand, Sompal Kami performed really well for Nepal against the Green Team and bagged two wickets in the tournament opener.
With the match being a do-or-die situation, both India and Nepal would look to give their best and stay alive in the contest.
ODI stats and records at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium:
- Total matches played: 38
- Won batting first: 15
- Won bowling first: 21
- No result: 2
- Average first innings score: 248
- Average second innings score: 201
- Highest total: 363/7 by South Africa
- Lowest total: 70 all-out (Zimbabwe)
- Highest run chase: 314/6 (Pakistan)
- Lowest total defended: 206/9 (West Indies)
- Most runs: 939 runs (Tillakaratne Dilshan)
- Highest score: 162 (Ibrahim Zadran)
- Best bowling figures: 6/31 (Mitchell Johnson)
- Most sixes: 16 sixes (Dasun Shanaka)
- Most wickets: 24 wickets (Lasith Malinga)
Also READ: Gautam Gambhir lashes out at Indian players for being too friendly with Pakistan team members
Pallekele International Cricket Stadium Pitch report:
The Pallekele Cricket Stadium is known for its superb batting pitch. It doesn’t offer much support to fast bowlers, creating an excellent environment for stylish stroke-play and enjoyable batting. Once batters get into their groove and find their comfort zone, they frequently take advantage of numerous scoring opportunities. Additionally, the track tends to become more conducive to spin bowling as the game progresses. Captains winning the toss would look to choose to bat first and make the most of these advantageous conditions.
Pallekele Weather Report:
The weather at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium will be cloudy, with a high chance of thunderstorms and rain. The persistent showers are likely to interrupt the game with an 80% chance of precipitation. However, cricket enthusiasts can still expect the match to take place despite the interruptions. The temperature is expected to hover around 26 degrees Celsius with humidity levels to be around 84% and the wind blowing at a speed of 16 Km/hr.
IND vs NEP, Probable XI:
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan (wk), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj
Nepal: Kushal Bhurtel, Aasif Sheikh (wk), Rohit Paudel (c), Aarif Sheikh, Kushal Malla, Dipendra Singh Airee, Gulsan Jha, Sompal Kami, Karan KC, Sandeep Lamichhane, Lalit Rajbanshi
