Top three heated moments in Asia Cup history ft. Gautam Gambhir
The 2025 edition of the Asia Cup is less than two weeks away. The tournament is scheduled to begin on 9th September with the final taking place on 28th September. Earlier, the matches were due to be held in India; however, the political tensions between India and Pakistan have led the tournament to be shifted across two venues in the UAE. India and Pakistan are placed in group A alongside the UAE and Oman, while Group B comprises teams, namely Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Hong Kong.
The anticipation around the tournament is building with each passing day. Fans are excited to see India and Pakistan, once again, lock horns in a multi-nation tournament. The two teams no longer participate in the bilateral tournaments. The fans from both countries agonisingly wait for these tournaments so that they can see the arch rivals play against each other.
Over the years, we have seen some thrilling encounters in the continental tournament. However, the pressure to win games has also led to some heated battles between the players. On numerous occasions, players have engaged in heated altercations, adding both the much-needed excitement and, at times, unnecessary drama to Asia Cup encounters
In this article, let’s take a look at the top three heated moments in Asia Cup history:
1. Gautam Gambhir vs Kamran Akmal, 2010 Asia Cup
The 4th match between India and Pakistan in the 2010 Asia Cup is remembered for a variety of reasons. Gautam Gambhir’s spectacular knock of 83 runs in 97 balls was instrumental in helping India register a three-wicket win over the arch-rivals. During his knock, Gambhir also had a verbal spat with Pakistan wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal.
The Pakistan wicket-keeper made caught-behind appeals, even when Gautam Gambhir made no contact whatsoever. Gambhir couldn’t fathom Akram making unnecessary appeals, and it led to a heated argument between the two. The umpires and MS Dhoni, later, intervened and cooled things down a bit.
2. Harbhajan Singh vs Shoaib Akhtar, 2010 Asia Cup
In the same match talked about above, Harbhajan Singh and Shoaib Akhtar also lost their tempers and hurled abuses at each other. India needed 268 runs to win that game and earn crucial points. India were cruising into the run-chase till the time Gautam Gambhir and MS Dhoni were at the crease. However, following Gambhir’s departure in the 36th over, things shifted a bit as Pakistan picked wickets at quick intervals.
Harbhajan Singh walked out in the middle with 49 runs needed off the last 29 balls with Suresh Raina at the other end. The drama began to unfold after Harbhajan had deposited an Akhtar delivery over long-on for a huge six in the 47th over. Upset by the six, the Rawalpindi Express dished out a couple of bouncers directed towards Harbhajan’s rib cage and also exchanged a few words. The Indian off-spinner was not the one to back away, and the verbal altercation continued between the two till the last over of the game.
3. Fareed Ahmed vs Asif Ali, 2022 Asia Cup
The Pakistan vs Afghanistan fixture in the 2022 Asia Cup is also counted among the most intense encounters in the continental tournament. The match went down to the wire with Naseem Shah hitting two sixes in the last over to complete a memorable win.
But before the final over, Afghanistan’s Fareed Ahmed and Pakistan batter Asif Ali were engaged in a heated confrontation. After picking Asif Ali’s wicket in the penultimate over, Fareed Ahmed celebrated the wicket in a rather aggressive manner. The Pakistan batter wasn’t too pleased with his gesture and raised his bat, in response.
