India rock Pakistan on Dubai debut : The Tribune India

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India rock Pakistan on Dubai debut

DUBAI: India ticked all the boxes as they decimated Pakistan by eight wickets in a lopsided Asia Cup group league encounter here on Wednesday.

India rock Pakistan on Dubai debut

India’s Kedar Jadhav celebrates a Pakistan dismissal during their Asia Cup match in Dubai on Wednesday. AFP



Dubai, September 19

India ticked all the boxes as they decimated Pakistan by eight wickets in a lopsided Asia Cup group league encounter here on Wednesday. It was a superlative effort from the bowling unit that saw India dismiss Pakistan for a paltry 162 in 43.1 overs before Rohit Sharma (52 off 39 balls) and Shikhat Dhawan (46 off 54 balls) added 86 for the opening wicket to ensure a smooth chase for the Men in Blue in only 29 overs. This was India's most comprehensive victory in terms of balls remaining (126). 

After a wakeup call against Hong Kong, the Pakistan match was a near perfect performance for India as Bhuvneshwar Kumar (3/15) and Kedar Jadhav (3/23) were perfectly complemented by Jasprit Bumrah (2/23) and Kuldeep Yadav (1/37).

If Kuldeep's googly to snuff out Babar Azam was the turning point, Kedar Jadhav's unconventional side-arm off-breaks broke the lower middle-order. With the pressure of scoreboard virtually non-existent, Rohit and Dhawan showed why they are one of the most formidable opening pairs in white-ball cricket.

Pak rocked

Playing Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates for the first time since 2006, India were on target right from the start. 

With India playing only their second ODI in Dubai, Rohit lost the toss and Pakistan decided to bat first. But Bhuvneshwar’s tidy seam bowling was complemented by Jadhav’s unconventional off-breaks as India’s bowlers dominated the proceedings. 

While Bhuvneshwar provided initial breakthroughs, Jadhav, making a comeback to the national team, bowled with control to return with exceptional figures. Jadhav’s performance is laudable as he did the job of a frontline spinner after Hardik Pandya (0/24 in 4.5 overs) was stretchered off the field due to an acute lower-back injury.

This was after young Azam (47) and Shoaib Malik (43) added 82 runs for the third wicket and seemed to be taking control of the proceedings. However, Pakistan suffered a batting collapse, losing five wickets for 36 runs. 

India will play Pakistan in Super Four on September 23. — Agencies

Ind vs Pak: Numbers

8th win for India against Pakistan in the UAE. India have lost 19 times to Pak in UAE. Today India played in UAE for the first time since April 2006, when they beat Pak at Abu Dhabi

8wkt margin is India’s joint best margin against Pakistan in the UAE

12.5 Kedar Jadhav’s bowling average against Pakistan, from 3 ODIs. He’s picked up 4 wickets against Pakistan at a cost of 50 runs, with a best of 3/23. He had taken 1/27 against Pak at the Oval, London, in the Champions Trophy in June 2017

6th time India bowled out Pak for under 170 in ODIs and successfully chased the total. The biggest total India chased successfully against Pak is 329 in Dhaka in 2012, and the lowest total successfully chased is 116 in Toronto in 1997. The highest Pak total India chased in the UAE is 205 in UAE

5 wins by India against Pak in the last five years, since 2013. India lost 3 ODIs to Pakistan in this period

8 wins for India against Pak in the 2010s. In this period, India have lost 4 times to Pak. India last played in Pakistan in 2008, losing by 8 wickets in Karachi in the Asia Cup

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