India continued their T20 World Cup dominance against Pakistan with a thumping 61-run win in Colombo, sealing their place in the Super 8 as defending champions and tournament winners.
India, who have won 114 to Pakistan’s 176, have won eight of their nine matches against their rivals in the entire tournament and 16 of their 17 if you include the 50-over World Cup, with their only blemish being their 10-wicket haul in Dubai in 2021.
This latest match between cricket heavyweights took place only after Pakistan initially said they would not play in response to the ICC’s decision to exclude Bangladesh from the event for refusing to travel to India, before reversing their decision to boycott.
In the end, the result was familiar, with Hardik Pandya (2-16) giving India victory when he dismissed Usman Tariq for a duck after two dropped catches in the top of the 18th over.
India opener Ishan Kishan hit 10 fours and three sixes to score 77 off 40 balls.
India were 175-7 after losing the toss, where there was no handshake from the captain like in last year’s Asia Cup, with Ishan Kishan topping the score with 77 off 40 balls.
With spinner Saim Ayub taking 3-25 and coming close to a hat-trick in the 15th over, Pakistan suffered a torrid chase and slumped to 13-3 in two overs with one ball after Saim (6) smoked a pin six lbw by Jasprit Bumrah (2-17).
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Pakistan spinner Saim Ayub almost scored a World Cup hat-trick against India in Colombo.
Pakistan suffered their first loss at the World Cup after wins over the Netherlands and the United States and bowed out in response amid a barrage of reckless gunfire. But they will book their place in the Super 8s if they avoid an upset against Namibia in Colombo on Wednesday (9.30am UK).
India have made it three wins in as many games after beating the United States and Namibia, with Suryakumar Yadav’s men wrapping up their first-round tie against the Netherlands in Ahmedabad on Wednesday (1.30pm UK).
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Jasprit Bumrah hit two runs in the second over as Pakistan’s chase got off to a dismal start.
Kishan the batsman and the bowling attack helped India win the overall win.
India, who co-host the tournament along with Sri Lanka, contested 51-1 in the powerplay, mostly through the leg side, on the Kishan clubbed boundary after opening partner Abhishek Sharma failed to score in the first weekend’s win over the United States and was dismissed for a second successive T20 international duck.
In contrast, Pakistan were 38-4 in six overs in the chase, with Sahibzada Farhan (0) getting past Hardik Bumrah to remove Saim and Salman Agha (4) and Axar Patel castling Babar Azam (5).
The top-class collapse occurred after Pakistan fought back with the ball after Saim bowled Kishan with a sharply turning delivery in the ninth over. Kishan smashed 10 fours and three sixes and reached 50 off 27 balls.
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India opener Abhishek Sharma caught back-to-back T20 World Cup ducks after failing to score against Pakistan.
Saim pinned Tilak Varma (25 off 24) lbw in the 15th over before Hardik was trapped in the deep for a golden duck next ball, and then he thought he had completed his hat-trick by beating Shivam Dube (27 off 17), but the edge was not in sight on review.
Dube, Suryakumar (32 off 29) and Rinku Singh (11 off 4) took India to the total before the unconventional Pakistan spinner Usman Tariq, bowling after a long pause during the warm-up, claimed 1-24 and forced Suryakumar into the deep.
Usman Khan (44 off 34) gave Pakistan a glimmer of hope in the chase after a disastrous start, but the game was all but over when they were dismissed for 73-5 off Axar, followed quickly by two more wickets.
India spinner Varun Chakravarthy (2-17) bowled twice as many balls in his 16th over. He reviewed the hat-trick before Hardik took the final call, but to no avail and the players left the field without even shaking hands.
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