Pakistan Baseball team has bagged the gold after defeating rival India by 11-2 in the final match of Dubai Baseball Cup today.
The final match, that took place at Emirates Little Baseball Field, went in favor of green side from the very beginning when the Indian side hardly managed to score once in both second and third innings. On the other hand, green shirts managed to score 11 runs in their nine innings.
Umair Imdad Bhatti was named as the player of the match after he scored one home run and four runs in the championship game.
Executive Director of Pakistan Baseball Federation (PBF) Syed Fakhar Ali Shah told the media that this win will help the green side to jump up on the rankings chart.
He said:
The team played really well and performed outstandingly against India. This will help Pakistan in rising up the world rankings.
Shah revealed that the series took place in contrast to India’s unavailability in the West Asia Cup which was played earlier this year in Islamabad. Sri Lanka, Nepal, Iraq, Iran, and Pakistan had participated in that Cup.
He said:
The Indian team was not issued Pakistani visas and missed the event which also affected their ranking, so Pakistan and Indian Baseball Federation decided to play rankings match at a neutral venue. Following the agreement, both federations requested the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) and they gave this match the desired stature.
Shah told the media that the decision of choosing Dubai as a venue for Dubai Cup was taken upon the request of World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC).
The reason for selecting Dubai as the neutral venue is that the WBSC has been requesting the president of PBF Syed Khawar Shah to work on the development of baseball in Arab countries, as they want to promote the sport in the region.
The president of UAE Baseball Softball Federation, who attended the prize distribution ceremony of the final, said:
It was good to see India and Pakistan baseball teams in Dubai and I hope that the series will be fruitful for the promotion and the development of baseball in Dubai.
Currently, the National Baseball Team has been experiencing exceptional growth due to the return of the sport in 2020 Olympic.
Earlier this year, the Pakistan government also announced that it will be promoting the sport both domestically and internationally.
Previously, Pakistan and India also met in Korea at the WBSC Women’s Baseball World Cup 2016 where India won by scoring 19 against Pakistan’s 2.
