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Ravichandran Ashwin lauded India's dominant Asia Cup victory over Pakistan, emphasizing the significant gap in skill and experience between the two sides. He highlighted India's superior technical prowess and strategic execution, particularly praising the impact of IPL-honed players like Abhishek Sharma. Ashwin suggested that future contests between India and Sri Lanka might prove more competitive.

Pakistan's bowlers have significantly improved their ICC T20I rankings ahead of the Asia Cup, following their victorious performance in the UAE tri-series. Sufiyan Muqeem, Shaheen Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, and Mohammad Nawaz all experienced notable jumps in the rankings. Fakhar Zaman also saw improvement among batters, while Jofra Archer made significant gains in the ODI rankings.

Pakistan's bowling coach, Ashley Noffke, assures that Shaheen Afridi is regaining his top form before the Asia Cup, after battling a back injury in 2023. Afridi's pace is improving, with more balls reaching 140km/h during the West Indies series. He is working on his technique and swing to challenge the stumps consistently, aiming to hit speeds close to 150km/h.