New Delhi, Feb 21 (IANS) India and Pakistan are set to clash in another mega battle when they meet in the ICC Champions Trophy encounter at Dubai International Stadium on Sunday. It is a crucial clash with a lot riding for both teams — India will inch closer to a place in the semifinals if they win on Sunday while Pakistan by winning the match, Pakistan will maintain their chances of progressing to the knockout stage.
Here’s a look at some memorable clashes between the archrivals over the years:
2023 ODI World Cup
In a series of enthralling battles between the two neighbours in the white-ball format, the most recent 50-over encounter was in the 2023 ODI World Cup at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The home side led by Rohit Sharma won the toss and invited Pakistan to bat first.
Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who returned to international cricket just before the World Cup after a more than a year injury hiatus, along with Mohammed Siraj and Hardik Pandya made sure to back their captain’s call to bowl first. The trio picked two scalps each to bundle out the visitors for a paltry 191. The Indian spin duo of Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja also shared four wickets between them.
In the chase, Rohit led from the front and played a quickfire knock of 86 off 36 balls studded with six sixes and as many fours while Shreyas Iyer remained unbeaten on 53 to take the side over the line in 30.3 overs. India won the match by seven wickets as Bumrah was named Player of the Match for his 2-19.
2023 Asia Cup (Super Four)
Another iconic encounter between India and Pakistan was played in Colombo during the 2023 Asia Cup Super Four, less than a month before their scheduled ODI World Cup clash in Ahmedabad.
Facing Pakistan for the second time in the tournament after the previous match was washed out due to rain, India were asked to bat first by the Babar Azam-led side. Captain Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill gave the ideal start and stitched a 122-run partnership for the opening stand. Just after the duo completed their respective half-century, Shaheen Shah Afridi bagged both openers in quick succession to put India under pressure.
However, Virat Kohli and K.L. Rahul did something extraordinary in the middle as the match moved to reserve day, on the next day, due to rain. The duo not only kept the scoreboard ticking but also stitched the highest-ever ODI partnership in an India vs Pakistan match. Kohli and Rahul amassed an unbeaten 233-run stand, bettering the previous 231-run stand between Sachin Tendulkar and Navjot Singh Sidhu for the highest ODI partnership against Pakistan.
Kohli played an unbeaten knock of 122 in 94 balls including three sixes and nine four while Rahul hammered 111 not out laced with two sixes and 12 fours to take India to 356/2 in 50 overs.
In the chase, Pakistani batters surrendered against the Indian attack with spinner Kuldeep Yadav clinching a five-wicket haul to skittle the opponents for 128 in 32 overs, handing India an emphatic 228-run win – their biggest win against Pakistan by the run margin. Star batter Kohli was awarded the Player of the Match for his masterclass knock.
2019 ODI World Cup
It was not the only setback that Pakistan have encountered in their historic cricket rivalry with India. During the 2019 ODI World Cup in England, Pakistan again ended on a losing side in Manchester as the M.S. Dhoni-led India won the encounter comfortably by 89 runs via the DLS method. Invited to bat first, K.L. Rahul and Rohit Sharma set the foundation of India’s innings with a solid 136-run opening partnership. Rahul departed after scoring 57 runs while Rohit went on to smash 140 laced with 14 fours and three sixes.
Virat Kohli too played a knock of 77 including seven fours as India reached 336/5 at Old Trafford.
In reply, opener Fakhar Zaman and Babar Azam stabilized the innings after losing opener Imam-ul-Haq early. The duo stitched a 104-run partnership for the second wicket before Kuldeep Yadav dismissed Babar for 48. The Indian spinner went on to bag Fakhar (62) in his next over before Hardik Pandya picked the wickets of Mohammad Hafeez (9) and Shoaib Malik on the golden duck to dent their hopes of winning the match in the rain-affected encounter.
Due to frequent rain interruptions, Pakistan were given a target of 302 to chase in 40 overs. In the end, Imad Wasim’s 46 not out along with Shadab Khan’s unbeaten 20 were not enough to take Pakistan home.
2017 Champions Trophy final
After losing the group stage encounter, Pakistan faced India in the summit clash for the first time in 10 years, after the 2007 T20 World Cup final, in The Oval. The Virat Kohli-led India won the toss and invited them to bat first, a decision that denied them their second Champions Trophy title.
Openers Azhar Ali and Fakhar Zaman staged a 128-run first wicket stand before Jasprit Bumrah gave the first breakthrough. Azhar departed after contributing 59 runs as Babar Azam joined Fakhar in the middle. The duo added 72 runs for the second wicket with Fakhar playing the role of the aggressor until Hardik Pandya got rid of him in the 34th over. Fakhar scored 114 runs including three sixes and 12 fours. Shoaib Malik failed to leave his mark on the scoreboard and fell cheaply on 12. Mohammad Hafeez (57 not out) scored a fiery half-century while Babar contributed 46 to Pakistan’s total of 338/4 in 50 overs.
India’s reply to Pakistan’s daunting total was very poor as they lost opener Rohit Sharma for a three-ball duck in the first over while captain Virat Kohli (5) also followed suit with Mohammad Amir striking for Pakistan. Shikhar Dhawan became the third victim of Amir in the penultimate over of the power-play as India’s hopes were pinned on senior batters Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni. The duo failed and lost their wickets cheaply as India were reduced to 54/5 in 13.3 overs.
All-rounder Hardik Pandya showed some resilience in the late middle-order but didn’t find support from the other end to stage a counterattack. Pandya top-scored for India with a knock of 76 off 43 balls with the help of six sixes and four fours but ultimately it all went in vain as they were bundled out for 158 as Pakistan won the match by 180 runs to claim their maiden Champions Trophy title.
–IANS
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