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Wicketkeeper-batter Muneeba Ali believes Pakistan’s composure and belief under pressure will be crucial against India in their Asia Cup clash on Saturday.

Pakistan started their campaign with a 35-run victory over Thailand. This win came after a determined recovery from an uncertain start with the bat. Muneeba said the team’s response to early setbacks showed the confidence and resilience needed against stronger opponents. “When wickets kept falling in the powerplay, we knew that if we got a good partnership and kept scoring runs, it would put the bowlers under pressure and give us opportunities to score,” Muneeba stated during the post-match press conference. “That was my strategy.”

Muneeba acknowledged Pakistan’s batting struggles in recent T20I series but noted the players had worked on their weaknesses during training camps. “In the last few T20 series we played before Sri Lanka, our batting unit did not click as such and we had our struggles,” she said. “We have been working on those issues in camps to make sure we don’t repeat the same mistakes and bring in some different options in our batting.”

She added that the biggest positive against Thailand was the team’s refusal to lose confidence despite losing wickets at crucial stages. “Even when we lost wickets, the team kept believing and tried to set a total that would be defendable against the opposition on this pitch,” Muneeba said.

Pakistan’s batting recovery was supported by an impressive bowling performance. Thailand was restricted to 84-8 in their 20 overs. Left-arm spinner Nashra Sandhu was particularly effective, conceding only six runs in her four overs. She said understanding the pitch conditions helped her maintain control. “I knew there was bounce and turn in the pitch, and that it was keeping low. I just had to bowl in the right areas and let the pitch do the rest,” Nashra said.

All-rounder Tuba Hassan also claimed two wickets for 17 runs. She stressed the importance of learning from the opening match ahead of the India encounter. “My plan was simple: bowl wicket-to-wicket and vary the pace as much as possible because we also need to prepare for the next match,” Tuba said. “These are exactly the things we need to learn from so that we can make fewer mistakes in the next matches and play better.”