It’s as if the Pakistan vs UAE match needed any more mishaps, the on-field umpire Ruchira Palliyaguruge was substituted due to a concussion. Pakistan, however, did prevail in the end despite not having enough runs on the board against the UAE to advance to the Super 4s.
Pakistan vs the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was one bizarre game but the Men in Green would have been relieved that they came out on top despite not putting enough runs on the board and especially after the drama that unfolded in the build-up to the game, which even pushed it by an hour. The oddity of the game bled into it as well, as not just the players, but even the umpires were getting concussed. The on-field umpire, Ruchira Palliyaguruge, had to leave the field after being hit above his left ear on the head.
The incident took place in the final over of the powerplay of the UAE innings when the ball was lobbed back to the bowler, Saim Ayub. The ball-pass was high in the air, and even though it was unintentional, Palliyaguruge, was caught unawares, with his face being towards the bowler. It wasn’t a powerful throw, but it would have stung. The Pakistani physio and the ground medical staff were called upon quickly to attend to Palliyaguruge.
The upper ear area was a bit of concern for the Sri Lankan umpire. The concussion protocols were followed before Palliyaguruge decided that it was best for him to leave the field and the substitute umpire Gazi Sohel was summoned.
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The UAE were already three down inside the powerplay, chasing a modest target of 147 in their final Group A clash in the ongoing Asia Cup. Rahul Chopra and Dhruv Parashar did their bit to take the game deep, however, due to the lack of boundaries, they dug themselves into a hole. Chopra did hit a couple of shots, but due to the ever-rising required rate and inexperience, the UAE batters faltered and Pakistan eventually bowled the hosts out for just 105 and won the game by 41 runs.
India and Pakistan have qualified from Group A to the Super Fours while the Group B positions will be decided on Thursday, September 18 with Sri Lanka taking on Afghanistan in a crunch clash.