Asia Cup: India roar with emphatic seven-wicket win over Pakistan in subdued clash

An India–Pakistan clash is usually the heartbeat of any global cricket tournament, but the buzz was conspicuously absent on Sunday at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium during the Asia Cup 2025 fixture.

The stands were only partially filled despite the high-voltage billing, as the arch-rivals met for the first time since the barbaric terror attack in Pahalgam that left 26 Indian tourists dead. On the field, India dominated across all departments to complete a commanding seven-wicket victory, underlining the gulf between the two sides.

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The lack of bonhomie between players was also noticeable, perhaps a reflection of the fact that more than half of both XIs were facing each other for the first time. Pakistan, put in to bat after captain Salman Ali Agha won the toss, were evidently nervy and at one stage struggled to get past 100 before a late burst from Shaheen Shah Afridi pushed them to 127/9.

India, in contrast, showed no nerves. Abhishek Sharma, playing his 19th T20I, opened the chase by creaming Afridi for a first-ball boundary and followed up by launching the left-arm quick for a six, the very delivery.

Partnering his childhood friend Shubman Gill, he added 22 brisk runs before Gill fell for 10 to part-timer Saim Ayub. Undeterred, Abhishek tore into Afridi and Ayub again, racing to 31 with three fours and two sixes before Ayub dismissed him.

That brought captain Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma together, and the pair stitched a 56-run stand for the third wicket. Tilak played the aggressor with a steady 31 (two fours, one six) before falling to Ayub, but Suryakumar anchored the chase with an unbeaten 47 off 37 deliveries. Joined by Shivam Dube, the skipper finished in style, sealing the win with a six.

Earlier, on a fresh track that offered turn, the relatively inexperienced Pakistan top order struggled against a relentless Indian attack. Hardik Pandya struck with the second ball of the match to remove Ayub for a duck, before Jasprit Bumrah trapped Mohammed Haris (3) in the next over to leave Pakistan tottering at 6/2.

Pakistan desperately needed some solidity in the middle, and the arrival of Fakhar Zaman (17), their most experienced batter against India, did serve their purpose, albeit momentarily. Fakhar came up with some audacious shots, including a six off Bumrah during his 39-run partnership with opener Sahibzada Farhan, before Axar Patel broke the stand to pull India back.

Pakistan’s vulnerability against quality left-arm spin was exposed by Axar and later, the wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav, as the duo tore into the middle order. Soon after removing Fakhar, Axar got rid of Pakistan skipper Salman Ali Agha (3) to reduce the side to 49/4 midway through their innings.

There was no respite for the Pakistanis, as Kuldeep soon got into the act, removing Hasan Nawaz (5) and Mohammed Nawaz (0) off consecutive deliveries, before Faheem Ashraf survived the hat-trick ball. It appeared that the Indian spinners would take a wicket every delivery, exposing the weakness of the Pakistani batting.

Kuldeep came back for his final over to get rid of Pakistan’s top-scorer of the evening, Sahibzada Farhan (40), before Varun Chakravarthy jolted the opponents by trapping Faheem plumb in front to leave Pakistan reeling. At 97/8, Pakistan looked set for a sub-100 score, but Afridi swung late, striking four sixes to drag his team past 120.

Brief Scores: Pakistan 127/9 (Sahibzada Farhan 40, Shahin Shah Afridi 33 not out; Kuldeep Yadav 3/18, Axar Patel 2/28, Jasprit Bumrah 2/28) lose to India 131/3 (Suryakumar Yadav 47 not out, Tilak Varma 31, Abhishek Sharma 31; Saim Ayub 3/35) by seven wickets.