Pakistan defeated India by five wickets on Sunday in a thrilling Asia Cup Super-4 clash at the Dubai International Stadium.
Rizwan smashed 71 against India
Pakistan won its first game at the Asia Cup, beating India by five wickets. Mohammad Rizwan smashed 71 off 51 balls to propel Pakistan’s chase of 182 and overcome a shaky start after Babar Azam (14) was dismissed in the fourth over.
Pakistan made a strong start with openers Fakhar Zaman (47) and Imam-ul-Haq (53) putting on a 93-run stand for the first wicket. But India fought back to reduce Pakistan to 138/4 in 28 overs, giving the Indians some hope of defending the target.
However, Mohammad Rizwan’s blistering knock ensured Pakistan reached its target with two balls to spare.
Fakhar Zaman too failed to leave his mark, getting dismissed on a score of 15 by Yuzvendra Chahal. Rizwan and Mohammad Nawaz then stitched a crucial partnership — adding 84 runs for the third wicket before eventually falling short in the face of a great Indian bowling attack.
The victory went to Pakistan
Both Rizwan and Nawaz were dismissed in quick succession by Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Hardik Pandya, respectively. With Pakistan needing 26 off the last two overs, Bhuvneshwar leaked 19 runs in the penultimate over as India’s chances of victory slipped away from their grasp.
Earlier today, India piled up a strong total of 181 for seven in 20 overs against Pakistan during the Asia Cup Super-4 clash.
In the first over of Pakistan’s chase, Rizwan and Babar Azam both hit boundaries. Virat Kohli batted brilliantly for India, scoring 60 off 44 balls. He hit four boundaries and sixes.
India’s Virat Kohli creamed a six over deep midwicket as he crossed the 50-run mark; however, he was soon run out after Asif Ali made direct contact with the ball. Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul started strongly, scoring 54 runs in five overs between them.
However, India lost several wickets between the middle and end of their batting innings, which slowed down their momentum. Ravi Bishnoi struck two important boundaries but was given a helping hand by Fakhar Zaman — both got out at around the same time – as India ended its innings on a positive note. Earlier in this match Pakistan had won the toss and chose to bowl.