SHARJAH: Pakistan set India a target of 309 to chase in the electric finale of the Blind Cricket World Cup at Sharjah on Saturday.
Badar Munir stood not out with 57 runs, while Riasat Khan and skipper Nisar Ali made 48 and 47 runs, respectively, after India won the toss and invited Pakistan to bat first.
Pakistan stormed into the finale after defeating Sri Lanka by 156 runs in the semi-final on Wednesday. India beat Bangladesh by seven wickets in the semi-final to set up a title clash with Pakistan.
The Pakistan Blind Cricket Council has invited ICC CEO David Richardson, former Pakistan captain Zaheer Abbas and former Indian wicketkeeper Syed Kirmani to witness the final.
The final match was to be held at the Gadaffi Cricket Stadium in Lahore. However, due to the political tension between India and Pakistan, it was decided that the match will be played in the UAE. The finals will be played a day ahead of schedule. The initial tournament schedule showed that the finals will be played on 20th January 2018. But it wills now the played on 20th January 2018 at the MCC Ground in Ajman, UAE.
Although Pakistan is the official host for the tournament, India played all their matches in UAE. The United Arab Emirates has been the second home for Pakistan cricket since the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team in 2009.
Pakistan, in the mega event, registered wins against Bangladesh, Nepal, Australia and Sri Lanka in the semi-final while lost to India and Sri Lanka in the group matches.
While India, on the other hand, beat Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal. Whereas, their first match against Australia was washed out due to rain. India beat Bangladesh by seven-wickets in the semi-finals to proceed to the finals.
