WATCH: Salman Ali Agha smirks as Afghanistan labelled 'second best in Asia'

SHARJAH: Pakistan’s T20I captain Salman Ali Agha’s confused facial expressions, followed by a visible smirk at Afghanistan being dubbed as Asia’s second-best team, have gone viral on social media.

The incident occurred during a joint press conference by participating teams’ captains on the eve of the T20I tri-series in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) when a reporter asked Afghanistan skipper Rashid Khan about their plans for the upcoming assignment while hailing them as the second-best team in the continent on the back of their strong ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 campaign, during which they qualified for the semi-finals.

The reporter’s question presumably took Agha by surprise, causing a shift in his facial expressions, which were followed by a smirk.

His spontaneous reaction was noticed by cricket fans, who flocked to social media to share his close-up pictures.

For the unversed, the tri-series will run from August 29 to September 7 at the same venue and is seen as vital preparation for the upcoming ACC Men’s T20 Asia Cup, which takes place in the UAE from September 9 to 28.

The tournament will begin on Friday, August 29, with Pakistan facing Afghanistan in the opening clash under lights at 7:00 pm local time.

Each team will play the others twice, ensuring at least four matches per side before the top two advance to the final on September 7.

Schedule for T20I Tri-Series in UAE:

• 29 August – Afghanistan v Pakistan – 7pm local time

• 30 August – UAE v Pakistan – 7pm local time

• 1 September – UAE v Afghanistan – 7pm local time

• 2 September – Pakistan v Afghanistan – 7pm local time

• 4 September – Pakistan v UAE – 7 pm local time

• 5 September – Afghanistan v UAE – 7pm local time

• 7 September – Final – 7 pm local time