A clinical display with the bat and the ball saw India score a 61-run triumph over arch-rivals Pakistan and seal their Super 8 qualification at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup at Colombo on Sunday.
Defending 176, Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah were on the mark as they duo shared three wickets between them in their opening burst to help India mount early pressure on Pakistan. Pandya, who started the proceedings for India with the ball, managed to dismiss Sahibzada Farhan for a duck in his first over.
Meanwhile, Jasprit Bumrah, got the better of Saim Ayub and Pakistan captain Salman Agha. Axar Patel then made it four wickets for India in the powerplay, removing the seasoned Babar Azam out of the equation.
With the wickets continuing to tumble at one end, wicket-keeper-batter Usman Khan led the recovery for Pakistan, collecting boundaries against the run of play. Scoring 44 off 34 deliveries, Khan consolidated six fours and a six to keep Pakistan in the play in Colombo. However, just as he was looking to turn the tide in Pakistan’s favour, Axar Patel struck with the ball once again.
Luring the right-hander into coming down the crease, Axar got one past him and Ishan Kishan completed the stumping. Not too later, Kuldeep Yadav and Tilak Varma also got into the thick of it. Kuldeep got rid of Mohammad Nawaz with Shivam Dube completing the catch. Meanwhile, Tilak Varma snapped wicket of Shadab Khan in his first over. Varun Chakaravarthy then nabbed a quickfire brace to reduce Pakistan to nine wickets down.
But it was Hardik Pandya, who wrapped thing up with the final wicket, sealing a 61-run win for the co-hosts and the defending champions.
“This is for India. We played the same brand of cricket we wanted to play. The way Ishan batted, he batted the same way he has been batting in the last few games and domestic cricket. Ishan thought something out of the box. At 0-1, someone needed to take responsibility and he did that amazingly. There was a bit of a slump but that is the beauty of t20 cricket. The way they (Tilak, Dube and Rinku) batted, it is commendable,” said India skipper Suyakumar Yadav.
On what he felt was a par score, Yadav said: “Difficult to tell when batting first. As soon as we reached 175, we thought it was 15-20 runs over par. 155, it would have been a very tight game. Hardik took the new ball, taking charge. Bumrah then showed why he is the best in the world. It was great to see everyone contributing.”
Earlier, courtesy of a whirlwind start by Ishan Kishan, India posted 175 for 7, the highest score in an India vs Pakistan contest at the T20 World Cup in Colombo.
“The wicket was not that easy. Sometimes, you just have to believe and focus on your strengths. Was just watching the ball, sticking to my strengths and making them run as much as possible. I did work a lot on my off-side game, so then I can have them bowl where I want them to bowl. On a big ground, you get bigger gaps. Trying to hit the gaps, trying to take two runs. Knew we had to put up a total like 160-170, which would be a good total for us. India-Pakistan, always a special game, not just for us but our country as well. They had pretty good spinners in their side. Winning this against Pakistan, it will give us confidence going forward,” said Ishan Kishan, who was named Player of the Match.
After electing to field first, Salman Agha surprised many as he opened the bowling. And the Pakistan captain’s gamble paid off as he dismissed Abhishek Sharma while conceding only one run in the over. It was Sharma’s second duck of the tournament.
India responded well after the early wicket, grabbing 15 runs off the second over by Shaheen Shah Afridi. Unstoppable since coming back to the Indian team, Kishan was on a roll against Pakistan as well. His innings was a heady mix of power and smarts, as he piled on 77 off 40 balls, with the help of three sixes and 10 fours to give India just the jumpstart they needed.
On a slowish wicket, where Pakistan used six spinners, leg-break bowler Saim Ayub was Pakistan’s trump card. He castled Kishan, limiting the damage, and then sent off Tilak Varma and Hardik Pandya off successive balls and narrowly missed a hat-trick. Usman Tariq, Agha and Shaheen Afridi picked up a wicket each.
While Suryakumar Yadav (32) and Tilak Varma (25) kept the scoreboard ticking in the middle overs, Shivam Dube and Rinku Singh’s cameos at the end pushed India past 170-mark.
“We went with four spinners; they had an off-day. Execution was missing in some parts. With the bat, we did not start well. If you lose 3-4 wickets in the powerplay, you are always chasing the game. In the first innings, it was a bit tacky, and the ball was gripping too. The pitch played better in the second innings, but we did not bowl according to the situation, and we did not apply ourselves with the bat. In these games, the emotions are always going to be high, we just need to deal with it. We have played enough (of these games), we have a game in a couple of days, and we have to look forward to it. We need to win that and qualify. Then it is a new tournament,” said Pakistan skipper Salman Ali Agha.
Brief scores: India 175 for seven in 20 overs (Ishan Kishan 77, Tilak Varma 25, Suryakumar Yadav 32, Shivam Dube 27; Saim Ayub 3/25) beat Pakistan 114 in 18 overs (Usman Khan 44, Shaheen Shah Afridi 23; Hardik Pandya 2/16, Jasprit Bumrah 2/17, Axar Patel 2/29, Varun Chakravarthy 2/17).
