Team India lift their 9th Asia Cup title by beating arch rivals Pakistan by 5 wickets in what was a thrilling final in Dubai. Tilak Verma and Shivam Dube putting up a match-winning partnership.
In a dramatic India-Pakistan T20 encounter, both teams saw major momentum swings before Tilak Varma’s calm head and late flourish sealed a tense win for India in the final over.
Pakistan got off to a flying start after being put in to bat, thanks to an 84-run opening stand between Sahibzada Farhan and Fakhar Zaman. Farhan was fluent early, reaching his half-century quickly, while Fakhar supported him well. However, India clawed back as Varun Chakravarthy broke the partnership, removing Farhan and bringing India back into the game.
Kuldeep Yadav then struck to remove Saim Ayub, and Varun added Fakhar to his tally, denting Pakistan’s top order. After a poor start with the ball (2 overs for 23), Kuldeep returned with a vengeance, picking up four wickets in his final two overs to finish with figures of 4/30. Pakistan suffered a shocking collapse, losing their last 9 wickets for just 33 runs to be bowled out for 146.
Pakistan responded strongly with the ball, as Faheem Ashraf and Shaheen Afridi reduced India to 20/3 within four overs. However, Sanju Samson and Tilak Varma steadied the chase with a 57-run stand. Samson was dropped on 12 by Talat — a costly miss — but he eventually fell to Abrar Ahmed.
Tilak carried on unfazed, bringing up a composed half-century. Shivam Dube joined him to add a crucial 50-run partnership, providing support with timely boundaries. With 10 needed off the final over bowled by Haris Rauf, Tilak finished the job in style, launching a six to win the match for India.
The game saw exceptional comebacks from both sides, but India held their nerve better, thanks to Kuldeep’s brilliance with the ball and Tilak’s maturity under pressure.
Source: Business Standard
