Asia Cup 2018 is probably the biggest multi-nation tournament in cricket this year, and therefore, the hype surrounding the event was much more than usual.
Another reason for this tournament's success is because for the first time in history, the tournament was organized in the United Arab Emirates, where every team has a considerably amount of support and fan following.
The tournament is now coming to its conclusion with the final to be played on September 28 in Dubai between India and Bangladesh.
The Men in Blue will go into the grand finale as firm favorites as they are still unbeaten in the tournament. In their tournament opener, Rohit Sharman-led unit register 26-win against Hong Kong, whereas after that, they thrashed arch-rivals Pakistan by eight wickets.
In the Super-Four round, the defending champions defeated Bangladesh by seven wickets, Pakistan by nine wickets and drew against Afghanistan.
On the other hand, Bangladesh tournament has proved to be nothing less than roller coaster ride. The team came in the tournament suffering from injuries to some crucial players and in the first match, veteran opener Tamim Iqbal fractured his thumb while batting and was ruled out from the rest of the tournament.
Even then, the Mashrafe Mortaza-led unit thrashed Sri Lanka in their first match by 137 runs, but lost their next match against Afghanistan by 136 runs.
In their Super-Four first match, the Tigers suffered another demoralizing defeat against India by seven wickets, but made a great comeback in next two matches,
Asia Cup 2018 is probably the biggest multi-nation tournament in cricket this year, and therefore, the hype surrounding the event was much more than usual.
Another reason for this tournament's success is because for the first time in history, the tournament was organized in the United Arab Emirates, where every team has a considerably amount of support and fan following.
The tournament is now coming to its conclusion with the final to be played on September 28 in Dubai between India and Bangladesh.
The Men in Blue will go into the grand finale as firm favorites as they are still unbeaten in the tournament. In their tournament opener, Rohit Sharman-led unit register 26-win against Hong Kong, whereas after that, they thrashed arch-rivals Pakistan by eight wickets.
In the Super-Four round, the defending champions defeated Bangladesh by seven wickets, Pakistan by nine wickets and drew against Afghanistan.
On the other hand, Bangladesh tournament has proved to be nothing less than roller coaster ride. The team came in the tournament suffering from injuries to some crucial players and in the first match, veteran opener Tamim Iqbal fractured his thumb while batting and was ruled out from the rest of the tournament.
Even then, the Mashrafe Mortaza-led unit thrashed Sri Lanka in their first match by 137 runs, but lost their next match against Afghanistan by 136 runs.
In their Super-Four first match, the Tigers suffered another demoralizing defeat against India by seven wickets, but made a great comeback in next two matches, where they first defeat Afghanistan by three runs and later got the better of Sarfraz Ahmed's team in a comprehensive 37-run win on Wednesday.
But things just did not get easier for Bangladesh as before their last Super-Four clash against Pakistan, star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan was ruled out from the tournament following finger injury.
Key Players
Rohit Sharma
For India, Rohit Sharma is of pivotal importance, not only because he is the captain of the team, but also because he is their star performer with the bat as well. The right-handed batsman is in sublime form and has already scored two half-centuries and one century in four innings he played so far in the tournament. In the absence of Virat Kohli, Sharma will be responsible for providing platform to the rest of the team and on Friday and the team management will be expecting another captain's knock.
Mushfiqur Rahim
Mushfiqur Rahim has proven to be Bangladesh's most trusted batsman in this tournament so far. The wicketkeeper-batsman is the second-highest run-getter in the tournament with 297 runs in four innings at an average of 74.25 and strike-rate of 81.81. It is worth mentioning here that Rahim played two match-winning innings against Sri Lanka and Pakistan as well, which earned him the player of the match award on both occasions. After scoring brilliant 99 against Pakistan in the last match, Rahim will be eyeing another impressive show in the all-important clash.
Mustafizur Rahman
Mustafizur Rahman has come of age as a premier fast-bowler and now he is showing the world what he is exactly capable of. In a big tournament like Asia Cup, Rahman showed his class by delivered for his team and guided them to the final of the tournament with eight scalps in just four matches. With all eyes set on the big match, Bangladesh team management will be hoping that their star perform will rise up to the occasion, at least one last time.
