Pakistan pip India to the finishing line in a nail-biting encounter

Despite all the struggle and thrill that forced the game down to the penultimate delivery of the innings, Team India failed to emerge as the victors of the contest on a Sunday evening roller-coaster. Questions have been parked already as the Men in Blue almost got everything correct but, on a day, where even the best of them couldn’t really get their chips right, Rahul Dravid will have to get a few thoughts in motion before India meets Sri Lanka in the upcoming encounter.

Babar Azam won the toss and elected to bowl first saw the two Indian openers putting their feet on the fifth gear as Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul brought out the heavy artillery early in the innings. After a thunderous partnership that propelled the Men in Blue to a half-century stand in just five overs, Rohit Sharma miscued his effort with Khusdil Shah bagging a decent catch off Haris Rauf’s bowling. KL Rahul returned in quick succession too as Mohammad Nawaz was gifted a sitter with the former trying to kiss the ropes again.

Suryakumar Yadav’s brief blitzkrieg didn’t really bear fruit as he got out doing what he does the best, taking the bowlers head on. The fall of KL Rahul sparked a collapse at the other end while Virat Kohli forged a warring knock at one. The former Indian captain seemed to be in full flow, a sight that will be keeping the Indian fans afloat ahead of the T20I World Cup. A valiant effort from Virat Kohli helped India secure 181 from their 20 overs with Ravi Bishnoi dealing a couple of boundaries in the final two deliveries, that can be attributed more to a Pakistani slip-up in the field than the Indian’s leggie’s striking prowess.

Pakistan started off on a decent note but Babar Azam’s early fall sparked an infamous déjà vu of what happed in Dubai a week ago. However, Mohammad Rizwan battled redoubtably and kept the Men in Green very much in the contest. Fakhar Zaman tried dropping an anchor at the other end, but couldn’t sustain his knock as Yuzvendra Chahal removed the Pakistan southpaw.

However, it was an incredible show from Mohammed Nawaz that paired perfectly with Rizwan’s belligerence to help Pakistan amp up their intensity and bring down the equation in their control. Despite the fall of the duo, Asif Ali and Khusdil Shah stitched the fortune of the contest convincingly with a string of impressive strokes that left the Indians scratching their heads. Arshdeep's momentary loss of concentration leading to a dropped catch proved costly as Asif Ali and Khusdil Shah took 19 off the penultimate over to reduce the equation to 7 off the final over. Despite Arshdeep's best efforts, the Men in green crossed the line with a ball to spare in yet another India-Pakistan classic in the middle-east.

India will be up against Sri Lanka in a must-win encounter and will be hopeful of shrugging aside the rare blip as they look to put their Asia Cup defense back on track.