After India’s dominating victory against Pakistan on Sunday in the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, Indian skipper Virat Kohli said that he “felt like a club batter” when teammate Yuvraj Singh was in full flow during the match against green brigade.
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Pakistan’s target at the start of its innings was 324 runs in 48 overs under the Duckworth-Lewis method, but this became 289 in 41 after play was again interrupted by rain. Earlier, a dazzling knock by Rohit Sharma helped defending champions India made 319 for the loss of three scalps after losing the toss.
# Dhawan and Rohit Sharma were involved in a stand of 136 for the first wicket – India’s highest partnership for any wicket vs Pakistan in the ICC CT, eclipsing the 82 for the seventh wicket between Rahul Dravid and Ajit Agarkar at Birmingham on September 19, 2004.
Even if Pakistan had not grappled with the age-old problem of dropped catches – Yuvraj Singh and Virat Kohli plundered 45 off 24 and 38 off 12 after being reprieved – Pakistan might have still had to chase 280, which on the evidence of their batting might have been handful.
Demonstrating composure, timing and an understated inventiveness in his shot-making, Kohli, along with Yuvraj and Hardik Pandya – who smashed three successive sixes at the end – clattered 72 runs off the final four overs to power India past the 300 mark, the persistence of the rain leaving Pakistan with a revised target of 289 that they never had a hope of reaching.
After nearly a 40-minute hold-up, with the scoreboard reading 46 runs in 9.5 overs, India regrouped their strategy and started counter-attacking. But Yuvraj’s unbridled aggression lifted the pressure on Kohli, who accelerated towards the end to remain not out on 81 off 68 balls.
The tournament is due to tomorrow when Australia play Bangladesh in Group A at The Oval, where there is expected to be a big security operation. It leaves them requiring victories from their final two games against Sri Lanka and South Africa to have any chance of progressing to the semi-finals. India were better on all three aspects, add to that Kohli’s captaincy and one will get the flawless package.
Azhar was caught at deep square leg by Hardik Pandya, trying to hit left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja for six.
Umesh Yadav took 3-30, including the last two wickets, with Wahab Riaz absent hurt.
To add injury to insult, key seamers Mohammad Amir and Wahab Riaz limped out of an already limited attack and the latter was unfit to bat, leaving his team 164 for nine at the close. Junaid Khan, Hasan Ali, Amir – all there and thereabouts in terms of their pace. He had started off neatly, but then got stuck – partly as a outcome of a rain delay that stopped play in the 34th over – something not often seen with Kohli, even during Royal Challengers Bangalore’s rough campaign in IPL 2017.
“Everything was under control after 40 overs, but we lost the plot in the last eight”, Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed said.
Sharma’s innings was ended after he responded to Kohli’s call for a single.
For India, Rohit and Shikhar started on a cautious note and just when both the batsmen seemed to be settling in the middle, rain played the spoilsport.
“I think it’s a very good batting wicket”.
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Arthur said after the game: “We were below par”. I was lucky I was dropped, but I capitalised and I was hitting it well.
