United Arab Emirates defeated India by four wickets in their Hong Kong Sixes 2025 match on Saturday. Chasing 108, UAE got off to flying start Khalid Shah, Saghir Khan scored 42 runs in the first two overs. Later, Muhammad Arfan finished the proceedings with a massive six on the penultimate ball of the match. For India, Stuart Binny and Bharath Chipli scalped two wickets for India. Earlier, Abhimanyu Mithun and Dinesh Karthik produced knocks of 50 and 42, respectively, to help the Indian team put a total of 107/3 on the board. This was India’s second consecutive defeat as they earlier lost against Kuwait by 27 runs.
Yasin Patel’s fireworks led Kuwait to a strong total
Batting first, Kuwait lost Adnan Idrees early to Stuart Binny and Meet Bhavsar soon after to Abhimanyu Mithun. With those two early blows, Kuwait found themselves in a spot of bother at 12/2.
However, Bilal Tahir and Yasin Patel turned the game around in style. Tahir played a quickfire cameo, smashing 25 runs off just 9 balls with two fours and two sixes before falling to Shahbaz Nadeem.
But captain Yasin Patel was the real star of the show. One of the most explosive innings played so far in this tournament, Yasin hammered 58 runs off just 14 deliveries, striking two fours and eight towering sixes at a mind-blowing strike rate of over 400.
His clean hitting down the ground and over midwicket left India’s bowlers completely helpless. Kuwait finished with 106/5 in just six overs, an exceptional total in the short format.
Mithun, meanwhile, was the pick of the Indian bowlers, claiming 2 for 21, while Binny, Nadeem, and Dinesh Karthik chipped in with one wicket each.
India collapses in a humiliating upset against Kuwait
Chasing 107, India needed a blazing start, but their innings never quite took off. Veteran wicketkeeper Robin Uthappa fell on the very first ball to Yasin Patel, setting the tone for a tough chase.
Then, trying to counterattack early with a six, captain Dinesh Karthik was also dismissed by Yasin to leave India reeling at 9/2.
Priyank Panchal (17 off 10) and Abhimanyu Mithun (26 off 9) fought back with some powerful strokes, but the required run rate kept climbing.
Shahbaz Nadeem added a quick 19 off 8 balls, yet India’s middle order couldn’t sustain the momentum and were bowled out on 79 runs, thus falling short of 27 runs.
Yasin Patel once again made the difference with the ball, picking up 3 for 23 in his two overs and sealing a memorable win for Kuwait.
With this victory, Kuwait made a strong statement in Pool C and qualified for the next stage.
India also lost to UAE in the bowl round
To make matters worse for India in Hong Kong Sixes 2025, they lost the bowl round match to the UAE by 4 wickets. In the first inning, Abhimanyu Mithun’s 50 off 16 balls and Dinesh Karthik’s 42 off 14 balls powered India to a 107-run total.
However, India lost the plot in the second inning. UAE skipper Khalid Shah hit 50 off 14 balls, followed by a strong cameo from Muhammad Arfan, who hit 20 off just 5 balls.
That explosive hitting helped UAE chase down the total in the penultimate delivery to upset India for the second time in a single day.
India have now slipped to third spot in the bowl round, while Sri Lanka and UAE are placed first and second, respectively.
