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The continental cricket tournament, Asia Cup, hosted by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), has been a showpiece event in the history of the sporting world for more than four decades. Since its inception in the year 1984, Asia Cup has seen a fair share of glorious performances from players in the continent, whether it's with the bat, ball, or in the field.
Talking about the batting side of things, some of the best in the world to have played the Asia Cup are Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Kumar Sangakkara, Sanath Jayasuriya, Younis Khan, Babar Azam, and Habibul Bashar, among others. These players have made their mark on the tournament with the bat, scoring big runs in the process.
But, as much as individual scores are heralded in the cricketing world, the partnerships among batters is just as important in determining the eventual outcome of a match. With that, SportsTiger looks at three of the highest partnerships in the history of the Asia Cup.
Ajinkya Rahane and Virat Kohli: 213 vs Bangladesh in 2014
In the second match of the Asia Cup 2014 at the Khan Shaheb Osman Ali Stadium in Fatullah, the Indian pairing of Ajinkya Rahane and Virat Kohli put together the third-highest partnership of 213 runs in the tournament. After getting put into bat first, Bangladesh scored 279/7 in their allotted 50 overs, thanks to the incredible century from Mushfiqur Rahim, finishing up with 117 off 113 deliveries.
During the run chase, Team India lost two quick wickets of the openers Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma, which brought Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane to the crease one after another. The 34-year-old, who was the stand-in captain at that time, took charge of the scoring against the Bangladeshi bowlers, scoring a plethora of boundaries in quick succession early in his innings.
He kept the momentum going, before Ajinkya Rahane joined in on the boundary hitting, to demoralise the opposition further. Virat Kohli ended up 136 off 122 deliveries with 16 fours and two maximums, while his partner got a half-century, to help Team India win the contest with an over to spare.