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Reigning 20-overs world champions India look overwhelming favorites to retain their Asia Cup title with Suryakumar Yadav leading a crack squad that can sweep aside rivals and any geopolitical distraction in the tournament beginning on Tuesday.

The Sept. 9-28 tournament had looked in limbo after four days of military conflict between tournament hosts India and bitter neighbors Pakistan in May this year.

The eight-team competition was subsequently moved to the United Arab Emirates but the geopolitical undercurrents were palpable with several former India cricketers demanding a boycott of matches against Pakistan.

With New Delhi backing the Indian cricket board’s stance of playing Pakistan in multi-team events only, the Asian Cricket Council, which organizes the Asia Cup, is confident its flagship tournament would prove a success.

With an eye on the T20 World Cup next year, India gave an indication of how seriously they view the tournament when they picked pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah.

The 31-year-old is played sparingly to manage his all-format workload and India will hope to benefit from the wily seamer’s craft both in the powerplay and the death overs.

Test captain Shubman Gill has been recalled to reinforce a batting lineup teeming with serious power-hitters like Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma, currently the top-two T20 batters in official rankings, as well as skipper Suryakumar.

Arch-rivals Pakistan will enter the tournament low on experience but high on confidence after winning a tri-series, also involving Afghanistan and hosts UAE, on Sunday.

“We wanted to prepare in a way that helps us for the Asia Cup and we’ve done that,” Pakistan captain Salman Agha said.

“We’ve been doing really well since the Bangladesh home series. Finally, we’re in very good shape and fully prepared for the Asia Cup.”

Having ignored former captains Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, Pakistan will need sustained contribution from their batters against tougher opposition.

Afghanistan lost to Pakistan in Sunday’s final in Sharjah but skipper Rashid Khan counts their familiarity with conditions as a major gain.

“It’s important for us to learn from these conditions ahead of the Asia Cup,” Rashid, who will lead Afghanistan’s spin-heavy attack, said.

“Over the last eight-nine months, we haven’t played much T20 cricket together and a series like this gives us positive energy.

“I think it’s going to be a great and exciting Asia Cup for us.”

Under Litton Das, a new-look Bangladesh will be itching to prove their mettle having lost the likes of stalwarts Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim and Tamim Iqbal to retirement.

Afghanistan play Hong Kong in the tournament opener in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s benchmark stock index surged to a record high on Monday, lifted by strong corporate earnings and robust local institutional buying, while a survey showed most market participants expect the central bank to hold interest rates steady at its meeting later this month.

The Karachi Stock Exchange’s KSE-100 index gained as much as 1,922 points before settling up 1,810 points, or 1.17 percent, at 156,087. Investor flows into heavyweights such as Engro, Hub Power, Lucky Cement, Mari Petroleum and Sui Northern Gas helped drive the rally, adding more than 1,100 points to the index.

“Better-than-expected corporate earnings and strong local liquidity propelled the benchmark into uncharted territory,” said Maaz Mulla, vice president of equity sales at Topline Securities, a top brokerage house. 

Engro alone contributed over 400 points to the day’s rise after the brokerage reiterated a “buy” call on the stock, Mulla added. 

Total market participation remained high, with 1.12 billion shares traded at a value of PKR 62.2 billion.

POLICY OUTLOOK

Separately, a Topline survey said the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) was expected to keep its key interest rate unchanged at 11 percent when its monetary policy committee meets on Sept. 15, with 72 percent of respondents forecasting no move.

The SBP began cutting its policy rate from a record 22 percent in June 2024, delivering 10 percentage points of easing by January 2025. It paused at 12 percent in March, cut further in May to 11 percent, and has held steady through June, July and August amid inflation concerns and flood-related risks.

The policy rate is the main tool used by the SBP to control inflation. A higher rate makes borrowing more expensive and slows demand, while lower rates can spur growth but risk fueling price increases.

“Looking at current market conditions and inflation outlook, we believe the SBP will maintain the policy rate at 11 percent in the upcoming monetary policy,” Topline Securities said in its survey report.

Topline also warned that the devastation of the 2010–2011 floods — Pakistan’s worst on record, which submerged a fifth of the country and cut rice production by about 30 percent — showed how climate disasters can fuel food inflation.

“The area under cultivation of wheat, rice and cotton fell between 3 and 18 percent,” it noted, adding that this year’s ongoing floods could trigger similar supply shocks.

Market signals also reflect expectations of stability. The six-month KIBOR — a key interbank lending rate — and yields on short-term government securities have shown little change since the last SBP meeting.

Topline projects inflation averaging 6–7 percent in fiscal year 2026 and expects gradual cuts later, bringing the policy rate to around 10 percent by mid-2026 once flood-related pressures subside.

Pakistan remains under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund program that emphasizes maintaining prudent monetary policy alongside reforms to stabilize the currency and strengthen transparency.