By Megha Mallick,News18

Copyright news18

The Suryakumar Yadav-led Indian team on Monday became the first side in the ongoing Asia Cup to qualify for the Super 4 stage of the tournament, which will see three more teams join to play against each other to decide the finalists. Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan are best-placed to qualify till now.
After Indian players didn’t shake hands with their Pakistan counterparts following the big clash in Dubai, the Pakistan Cricket Board blamed match referee Andy Pycroft for the same and threatened to pull out of the tournament if he was not removed from the umpire’s panel.
According to reports, the International Cricket Council might not pay heed to the Pakistan Cricket Board’s threats and has made its stance on the situation clear.
Pycroft is scheduled to officiate as match referee during Pakistan’s final league match of the Asia Cup.
The Pakistan Cricket Board’s threat to withdraw from their game against the hosts UAE, could have serious repercussions.
Should Pakistan follow through with the boycott, they would be eliminated from the Asia Cup.
In such a situation, Pakistan would finish the group stage with just two points, earned from their earlier victory over Oman. This tally would be insufficient to qualify for the Super 4 stage.
India, having already bagged qualification with four points from two games, would be joined by the UAE, who would get two points from the forfeited match against Pakistan, taking their total to four.
India lead Group A with four points, followed by Pakistan and the UAE, who are tied on two points each. The latter trail in net run rate.
If Pakistan forfeit, UAE would be awarded a walkover win, boosting them to four points and confirming their place in the Super 4 stage alongside India.
If Pakistan decide to play the game, it sets up a high-stakes game, with the winner booking the final Super 4 stage spot.