Asia Cup: 'We nailed the first half': India bowling coach Morne Morkel after record-breaking win vs UAE

India’s bowlers delivered a ruthless performance to set up a thrilling nine-wicket win over the UAE in their opening match of the 2025 Asia Cup in Dubai on Tuesday. Bowling coach Morne Morkel credited the team’s intense and disciplined preparation for the roaring result in the opener. “Yeah, a very solid start by the boys with the ball tonight. We haven't played a lot of white-ball cricket for a while, so I thought that leading into the game, our preparation was very focused. I think that is one thing that we did exceptionally well,” Morkel tod BCCI after the match.

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Kuldeep Yadav led the charge with figures of 4 for 7, while Shivam Dube backed him with 3 for 4, as the UAE were skittled for just 57 in 13.1 overs.

Only Alishan Sharafu (22) and captain Muhammed Waseem (19) managed double digits. Reflecting on his conversations with the players, Morkel highlighted the focus on intent and the message they planned to send ahead of the game. “I think that was our conversation going into the game, was to find our feet, put a lot of energy, bring a bit of body language, when we have the ball in our hands, and yeah, we nailed the first half,” he added.

India’s chase was just as clinical, with Abhishek Sharma and vice-captain Shubman Gill racing to the target in 4.3 overs. The win also saw Yadav surpass Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel’s T20I wickets tally, moving to 73 scalps in 41 matches at an average of 13.39.

India's next game in the tournament is against Pakstan on September 14.