Historically, India vs. Pakistan clashes have always been breathtaking. Both nations’ cricketers can become heroes or villains based on their performances during such an adversary rivalry encounters. Currently, players of both teams are highly ranked globally, so the expectations of their fans reach top heights.
We will enlighten you about the recently contested Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 match between India and Pakistan. You will see detailed scorecards, top performers, and innings summary as you go through the article.
Background
The first India vs. Pakistan Asia Cup encounter occurred in 1984, with India winning by 54 runs. Before entering Asia Cup 2023, these arch-rivals competed in 19 matches. Of those 19 clashes, the most successful Asia Cup side, India, won 10, and Pakistan won 6, while 3 ended in a no-result ending.
Pakistan came into Asia Cup 2023 as the number one ranked side, while India, with a mere 1-2 points difference, was ready to catch them. What’s surprising is to know that both these top sides never met in an Asia Cup final.
Thus, fans were hopeful for the first-ever India vs. Pakistan Asia Cup Final based on the current ranking and form of both teams compared to other Asia Cup participating sides.
India vs. Pakistan Group A Match
Pakistan and India were placed in Group A with the newly inducted Nepal side. The India vs. Pakistan Group A match occurred at Pallakelle International Stadium in Kandy, Sri Lanka. This rain-affected match, unfortunately, was abandoned after the completion of the first innings.
During the first innings, the Indian team lost their front three early courtesy of brilliant swing bowling from Naseem Shah and Shaheen Afridi. After being 66/4 at one stage, the Indian team attacked Pakistani spinners and set a target of 267. Kishen’s 82 and Pandya’s 87 were stand-out performances from team India, while Shaheen Afridi’s bowling figures 4/35 depicted his class.
Super 4 Clash – India vs. Pakistan
Knowing the Group A match was severely affected by the rain, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), with the agreement of all participating teams’ boards, decided to accommodate a reserve day for India vs. Pakistan Super 4 Clash.
This particular match took place in the historical venue in Colombo, i.e., R. Premadasa Stadium. Pakistan captain Babar Azam won the toss and elected to bowl first. Let’s put light on both innings.
First Innings
Shaheen Afridi’s first spell is always full of suspense and thrill, but this time, Indian skipper Rohit Sharma came with a positive mindset. He became the first batter to hit 6 in the first over of Shaheen. This motivated Rohit’s batting partner, Shubman Gill, to take on the bowlers.
Onslaught By Rohit and Gill
Rohit and Gill fearlessly dominated world-class bowlers like Shaheen and Naseem, irrespective of the seaming conditions. Indian opening pair put on a partnership of 121 in just 16 overs. Soon after Rohit’s dismissal, Shaheen got Gill on 58 runs by deceiving him with a slower one. It was a good comeback from Pakistani bowlers, but they still had to dismiss Kohli early!
Rain Intrepution Led To Reserve Day Continuation
Virat Kohli was joined by Rahul, who was returning after his injury. Kohli played risk-free cricket by playing the ball in the gaps while Rahul took on the bowlers. Just when Pakistan felt the chance to return in this match, heavy rain came to take the game on a reserve day. India were 147/2 in 24.1 overs at the time.
Marathon Partnership Between Kohli and Rahul
Pakistani pacers came into the reserve day as unfit. In particular, Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf couldn’t bowl at their very best after a few overs. Thus, it was up to all-rounder Faheem Ashraf to step up.
Kohli and Rahul were aware of this situation and decided to take on less-reliable Faheem. Rahul was playing unreal shots as if he had never been away from cricket for so long. Like he always bats, Kohli skillfully constructed the innings and was ready for an onslaught during the final overs.
India set a tremendous target of 357 in 50 overs. King Kohli made 122* off 94 balls, while stylish Rahul scored an impressive century and remained unbeaten on 111*. The pair made the highest-ever fourth wicket stand (233 runs) in 32 overs.
Miserable Pakistani Pacers Suffered Injury
Be it Pakistani spinners or pacers, all looked helpless in front of the masterclass shown by the Indian pair. It’s tough for genuine quick to bowl consistently at pace in such rainy conditions. Unfortunately, it led to Haris and Naseem’s injury as both didn’t complete their full quota of overs.
Haris bowled just 5 overs, while Naseem left the ground during his last over. Pakistan looked up to their match-winner, Shadab, who looked miserable in front of Indian batters. He failed to land the bowl in the right areas.
All Pakistani bowlers were quite expensive: Shaheen, Shadab, Faheem, and Iftikhar ended their spell with an economy of over 7, while Haris and Naseem’s economy remained near 6.00.
Second Innings
Pakistan needed to chase down 357 at a challenging run rate of 7.14. It was a tough ask, but Pakistani fans still had some hope as their side recently chased down two targets over 330. On two such occasions, Pakistan’s top-order batters, i.e., Fakhar, Imam, and Babar, played a crucial role.
Indian Pace Attack Rattled Pakistan Top Order
Left-handed opening pair Imam and Fakhar started cautiously as they respected the fine seam swing bowling of Siraj and Bumrah. Bumrah removed Imam early via trademark outswinger to the left-hander. Definitely! It was a tailor-made opportunity for Star Batter Babar Azam to stamp his authority.
Babar Azam made a promising start to the innings as he hit his two classical boundaries. But his innings didn’t last long before he got a Jaffa from Hardik Pandya. Pandya bowled a sharp indipper which bamboozled the stumps. With skipper Babar gone, 70% of Pakistan’s hopes were blown.
Kuldeep Yadav’s Magic With The Ball
Fakhar, after a defensive start, was on ewe to do bang-bang against spinners. But he gave away his wicket cheaply. Kuldeep bowled Fakhar, and Rizwan edged one off Thakur good length out-swing bowl. Pakistan were trumbling at 77/4.
Pakistani lower-order batter couldn’t hold their nerves after the worst possible start by the top order. The left-arm spin magic of Kuldeep finished all expectations of Pakistani fans even if 1% of them were available. Kuldeep registered bowling figures of 5/25 with extraordinary economy of 3.13.
Pakistan was bowled out for just 128 runs, and India won the all-important Asia Cup 2023 encounter by 228 runs. It was a record win for team India against arch-rivals in terms of runs. It was a historic night for Rohit and his men, while Babar’s side had to take a lesson from such a once-in-a-blue-moon outing.
Top Performers
Yet again, Virat Kohli delivered against Pakistan as his unbeaten 122* runs at a wonderful strike rate of 129.79 earned him the Man-of-the-Match award. Other performances worth mentioning are KL Rahul’s 111* runs off 106 balls and Kuldeep Yadav’s bowling figures 5/25.
It was such a one-sided clash India vs. Pakistan Asia Cup Super 4 Clash that none of the Pakistani players performed up to expectations.
Detailed Scorecard of Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 Clash- India vs. Pakistan
Below mentioned is the Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 Clash- India vs. Pakistan scorecard:
India Innings
| Batter | Runs Scored | 4s | 6s | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rohit Sharma | 56 | 6 | 4 | 114.29 |
| Shubman Gill | 58 | 10 | 0 | 111.54 |
| Virat Kohli | 122* | 9 | 3 | 129.79 |
| RL Rahul | 111* | 12 | 2 | 104.72 |
| Extras | 9 | |||
| TOTAL | 356/2 |
| Bowler | Overs Bowled | Runs Given | Wickets Taken | Economy Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shaheen Afridi | 10 | 79 | 1 | 7.9 |
| Naseem Shah | 9.2 | 53 | 0 | 5.68 |
| Faheem Ashraf | 10 | 74 | 0 | 7.4 |
| Haris Rauf | 5 | 27 | 0 | 5.4 |
| Shadab Khan | 10 | 71 | 1 | 7.1 |
| Iftikhar Ahmed | 5.4 | 52 | 0 | 9.18 |
Pakistan Innings
| Batter | Runs Scored | 4s | 6s | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fakhar Zaman | 27 | 2 | 0 | 54 |
| Imam ul Haq | 9 | 1 | 0 | 50 |
| Babar Azam | 10 | 2 | 0 | 41.67 |
| Mohammad Rizwan | 2 | 0 | 0 | 40 |
| Salman Ali Agha | 23 | 2 | 0 | 71.88 |
| Iftikhar Ahmed | 23 | 1 | 0 | 65.71 |
| Shadab Khan | 6 | 0 | 0 | 60 |
| Faheen Ashraf | 4 | 0 | 0 | 33.33 |
| Shaheen Afridi | 7 | 0 | 1 | 116.67 |
| Naseem Shah | retired hurt | - | - | - |
| Haris Rauf | retired hurt | - | - | - |
| Extras | 17 | |||
| TOTAL | 128/10 |
| Bowler | Overs Bowled | Runs Given | Wickets Taken | Economy Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jasprit Bumrah | 5 | 18 | 1 | 3.6 |
| Mohammad Siraj | 5 | 23 | 0 | 4.6 |
| Hardik Pandya | 5 | 17 | 1 | 3.4 |
| Shardul Thakur | 4 | 16 | 1 | 4 |
| Kuldeep Yadav | 8 | 25 | 5 | 3.13 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | 5 | 26 | 0 | 5.2 |
Summary
The solid Indian top order batted gracefully as they made 356 runs in 50 overs. Virat Kohli and KL Rahul completed a dazzling partnership of 233 runs, scoring 122* and 111* runs, respectively.
On the other hand, Pakistan was bowled out for only 128 runs. Indian leg spinner Kuldeep Yadav bragged a fifer while Pandya, Burmah, and Thakur got a wicket each. Only three batters from Pakistan scored 20+ runs, while Shaheen and Shadab got the only two wickets that fell during India’s innings.
