India 174 for 4 (Abhishek 74, Gill 47, Tilak 30, Rauf 2-26) beat Pakistan 171 for 5 (Farhan 58, Dube 2-33) by six wickets*
For nearly half the game, Pakistan gave India a rare challenge in recent encounters, but once again faltered under pressure. Their 171 was the highest first-innings total they have ever managed against India, yet it still wasn’t enough. India chased it down with ease, winning by six wickets and seven balls to spare.
Abhishek and Gill Lead the Way
Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill set the tone from the very first ball, as Abhishek launched Shaheen Afridi for six. The pair stitched together a blistering 105-run partnership off just 59 balls, leaving India with little to worry about later in the innings. Gill scored a quick 47 from 28 balls, while Abhishek powered on to a match-winning 74 off 39 deliveries, including six fours and five sixes.
“𝑾𝒆 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒚 𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒃𝒐𝒘𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕,” 𝑨𝒃𝒉𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒌 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆.
Even when tensions flared between players, India’s openers kept their calm, ensuring they didn’t let the aggression derail their chase.
Pakistan’s Missed Opportunity
Sahibzada Farhan’s fifty (58 off 44) gave Pakistan hope, especially after a solid 72-run stand with Saim Ayub. At one stage, Pakistan were cruising at 91 for 1 after 10 overs – their best halfway score against India in T20Is. But the innings slowed down dramatically, with Farhan himself managing just 7 runs off his next 11 balls.
Shivam Dube turned the tide with his variations, dismissing both Ayub and Farhan, and finishing with figures of 2 for 33. Varun Chakravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav then applied the squeeze, keeping Pakistan under control. A late cameo from Faheem Ashraf (20* off 8) lifted them past 170, but the total always looked short against India’s strong batting.
“𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒎𝒊𝒅𝒅𝒍𝒆 𝒑𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒖𝒔 𝒃𝒂𝒅𝒍𝒚. 𝑾𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒂’𝒔 𝒃𝒐𝒘𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒆𝒙𝒆𝒄𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒍𝒚,” 𝒂 𝑷𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎 𝒔𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒅.
India Wraps It Up
Abhishek and Gill’s explosive start ensured India never looked in trouble. Even after a brief slowdown when Sanju Samson (13 off 17) and Tilak Varma found scoring difficult, Tilak finished the job with a composed 30* off 28, striking key sixes late in the innings.
India’s dominance extended their unbeaten run over Pakistan since 2022, further highlighting the gulf between the two sides in recent years.
Also Read: Abhishek Sharma: Pakistan Came at Us Without Reason