Dubai: The highly anticipated Asia Cup clash between India and Pakistan ended in a one-sided victory for India on Sunday. Powered by a dominant performance from the batters following the spin magic of Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel, India crushed Pakistan by 7 wickets to make a spectacular start to their tournament. With this win, India extended their head-to-head record against Pakistan in T20 Internationals to an imposing 11-3.
Bowlers Break Pakistan’s Back
India’s decision to bowl first proved right from the outset when Hardik Pandya sent Saim Ayub back to the pavilion off the very first legal ball of the match. Jasprit Bumrah soon followed up with the wicket of Mohammad Haris. Although Sahibzada Farhan (40) showed some fight at one end, even hitting Bumrah for two sixes, the Indian spinners completely tightened their grip on the match after the powerplay.
The trio of Kuldeep Yadav (3/18), Axar Patel (2/18), and Varun Chakravarthy choked the run rate to such an extent that the Pakistani batters were forced to play desperate shots and kept losing wickets. Kuldeep was even on a hat-trick after dismissing Mohammad Nawaz. In the end, a blistering cameo of 33 runs off just 16 balls from Shaheen Shah Afridi managed to push Pakistan to a respectable total of 127.
Abhishek and Suryakumar Seal an Easy Victory
Chasing a modest target of 128, the Indian team got off to an explosive start. Young opener Abhishek Sharma shattered the confidence of Pakistan’s lead bowler, Shaheen Afridi, hitting him for a four and a six in the very first over. Although both openers were dismissed soon after, the quick runs scored in the powerplay had already laid the firm foundation for India’s victory.
Following that, Tilak Varma (31) and Suryakumar Yadav (47*) built a sensible partnership to take the team closer to the target. Playing in his trademark style, Suryakumar Yadav sealed a comfortable and memorable victory for India with 4.1 overs to spare. This match once again proved that in both the bowling and batting departments, the Indian team is far more balanced and powerful than its rival.
