Pakistan made history, defeat India for the first time in a World Cup

Pakistan made history, defeat India for the first time in a World Cup…

ASGHAR ALI MUBARAK

Pakistan made history on Sunday night, defeating India for the first time in a World Cup fixture and ending a painful jinx that first began in 1992. The Green Shirts were famous for their meltdowns against their arch-rivals in World Cup matches and had lost 12 straight matches to the Men in Blue. They were again heavy underdogs heading into the game, with few giving them a chance. But they flipped the script and inflicted a chastening 10-wicket defeat on India. It was the first time either side had beaten the other by 10 wickets in a limited-overs fixture. Chasing 152, captain Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan batted from start to finish as they made India’s ‘world class’ bowling attack look ordinary for once. Speaking after the match, Indian captain Virat Kohli admitted that his team “did not execute the things that we wanted to but credit is certainly due — they outplayed us today”. “They were very professional with the bat as well but we’re certainly not a team that presses the panic button, it’s the start of the tournament, not the end,” the Indian captain said, warning that “it’s not over yet.” Meanwhile, Azam said after his victory: “We executed our plans well and the early wickets were very helpful.” “The plan with Rizwan was to keep it simple. We tried to get deep in the crease and from about the eighth over, the dew came in and the ball came on nicely. This is just the start, we have [the] confidence to build on this win,” he said. Earlier, Shaheen Shah Afridi took three wickets, including skipper Kohli for 57, but India managed 151 for seven in their high-voltage Twenty20 World Cup clash. Left-arm fast bowler Afridi returned figures of 3-31 after a lethal first spell to hurt India after they elected to field first in the Super 12s encounter in Dubai. Kohli scored his 29th T20 fifty to help the team rebuild before being caught behind off Afridi as Pakistan dismissed the star batsman for the first time in a World Cup game. Afridi struck the first blow with an express delivery that swung in to trap Rohit Sharma lbw for a first ball duck and the bowler celebrated with his trademark open-arm gesture. Kohli walked in amid raucous applause from the Indian fans inside the 20,000-strong crowd who were soon silenced by another ripper from Afridi in his second over. The 1.98 metre bowler got KL Rahul with a delivery that came in sharply to take the batsman’s thigh pad and rattle the stumps. Kohli and new batter, Suryakumar Yadav attempted to hit back with some positive shots as they smashed Afridi for a six each. Wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan then pulled off a superb diving catch to cut short Yadav’s stay at the wicket with quick bowler Hasan Ali striking in his first over. Yadav made 11. Rishabh Pant joined Kohli in the middle and the left-right batting pair rebuilt the innings and took India to 60-3 at the end of 10 overs. Pant, a wicketkeeper-batsman who survived a close caught behind call off one of his attempted reverse sweeps, kept up the charge with adventurous stroke play. He hit Ali for two successive sixes but finally fell to Shadab Khan’s leg spin in the next over, top edging a ball that went high and into the hands of the bowler. Pant made 39 off 30 balls. Kohli stood firm to soak up the pressure to get to his 50 in 45 balls and help India to a competitive total.

152-0 after 17.5 overs: Shami to Babar, 2 runs

150-0 after 17.4 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 1 run

149-0 after 17.3 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 4 RUNS

145-0 after 17.2 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 4 RUNS

141-0 after 17.1 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 6 RUNS

135-0 after 17 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Babar, no run

135-0 after 16.5 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Babar, 2 runs

133-0 after 16.5 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Babar, 1 run

132-0 after 16.4 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, 1 run

131-0 after 16.4 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, 1 run

130-0 after 16.3 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, no run

130-0 after 16.2 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Babar, 1 run

129-0 after 16.1 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, 1 run

Babar Azam 63 (48), Mohammad Rizwan 61 (48)

128-0 after 16 overs: Shami to Babar, no run

128-0 after 15.5 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 1 run

127-0 after 15.4 overs: Shami to Babar, 1 run

126-0 after 15.3 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 1 run

125-0 after 15.2 overs: Shami to Rizwan, no run

125-0 after 15.1 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 4 RUNS

Mohammad Rizwan 56 (44), Babar Azam 62 (46)

121-0 after 15 overs: Bumrah to Rizwan, 1 run

120-0 after 14.5 overs: Bumrah to Babar, 1 run

119-0 after 14.4 overs: Bumrah to Rizwan, 1 run

118-0 after 14.3 overs: Bumrah to Rizwan, 2 runs

116-0 after 14.2 overs: Bumrah to Rizwan, 4 RUNS

112-0 after 14.1 overs: Bumrah to Rizwan, no run

Babar Azam 61 (45), Mohammad Rizwan 48 (39)

112-0 after 14 overs: Jadeja to Babar, 4 RUNS

108-0 after 13.5 overs: Jadeja to Babar, no run

108-0 after 13.4 overs: Jadeja to Rizwan, 1 run

107-0 after 13.3 overs: Jadeja to Babar, 1 run

106-0 after 13.2 overs: Jadeja to Babar, 4 RUNS

102-0 after 13.1 overs: Jadeja to Rizwan, 1 run

Mohammad Rizwan 46 (37), Babar Azam 52 (41)

101-0 after 13 overs: Varun to Rizwan, 1 run

100-0 after 12.5 overs: Varun to Babar, 1 run

99-0 after 12.4 overs: Varun to Babar, 6 RUNS

93-0 after 12.3 overs: Varun to Rizwan, 1 run

92-0 after 12.2 overs: Varun to Rizwan, 6 RUNS

86-0 after 12.1 overs: Varun to Babar, 1 run

Mohammad Rizwan 38 (34), Babar Azam 44 (38)

85-0 after 12 overs: Jadeja to Rizwan, no run

85-0 after 11.5 overs: Jadeja to Rizwan, 2 runs

83-0 after 11.4 overs, Jadeja to Babar, 1 run

82-0 after 11.3 overs: Jadeja to Rizwan, 1 run

81-0 after 11.2 overs: Jadeja to Rizwan, no run

81-0 after 11.1 overs: Jadeja to Babar, 1 run

Babar Azam 43 (36), Mohammad Rizwan 35 (30)

80-0 after 11 overs: Bumrah to Babar, 1 run

79-0 after 10.5 overs: Bumrah to Babar, 2 runs

77-0 after 10.4 overs: Bumrah to Babar, no run

77-0 after 10.3 overs: Bumrah to Babar, no run

77-0 after 10.2 overs: Bumrah to Babar, 4 runs

73-0 after 10.1 overs: Bumrah to Babar, 2 runs

Mohammad Rizwan 35 (30), Babar Azam 34 (30)

71-0 after 10 overs: Varun to Rizwan, no run

71-0 after 9.5 overs: Varun to Babar, 1 run

70-0 after 9.4 overs: Varun to Rizwan, 1 run

69-0 after 9.3 overs: Varun to Rizwan, 2 runs

67-0 after 9.2 overs: Varun to Babar, 1 run

66-0 after 9.1 overs: Varun to Babar, 4 runs

Babar Azam 28 (27), Mohammad Rizwan 32 (27)

62-0 after 9 overs: Jadeja to Babar, 1 run

61-0 after 8.5 overs: Jadeja to Babar, 6 RUNS

55-0 after 8.4 overs: Jadeja to Babar, no run

55-0 after 8.3 overs: Jadeja to Rizwan, 1 run

54-0 after 8.2 overs: Jadeja to Babar, 1 run

53-0 after 8.1 overs: Jadeja to Rizwan, 1 run

Mohammad Rizwan 30 (25), Babar Azam 20 (23)

52-0 after 8 overs: Varun to Rizwan, 1 run

51 after 7.5 overs: Varun to Babar, 1 run

50-0 after 7.4 overs: Varun to Rizwan, 1 run

49-0 after 7.3 overs: Varun to Rizwan, no run

49-0 after 7.3 overs: Varun to Rizwan, 1 run

48-0 after 7.2 overs: Varun to Babar, 1 run

47-0 after 7.1 overs: Varun to Rizwan, 1 run

Mohammad Rizwan 27 (21), Babar Azam 18 (21)

46-0 after 7 overs: Jadeja to Rizwan, 1 run

45-0 after 6.5 overs: Jadeja to Babar, 1 run

44-0 after 6.4 overs: Jadeja to Babar, no run

44-0 after 6.3 overs: Jadeja to Babar, no run

44-0 after 6.2 overs: Jadeja to Babar, no run

44-0 after 6.1 overs: Jadeja to Rizwan, 1 run

Babar Azam 17 (17), Mohammad Rizwan 25 (19)

43-0 after 6 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Babar, no run

43-0 after 5.5 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Babar, 2 runs

41-0 after 5.4 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, 1 run

40-0 after 5.3 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Babar, 1 run

39-0 after 5.2 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, 1 run

38-0 after 5.1 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, 2 runs

36-0 after 5.1 overs: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, 1 run

Mohammad Rizwan 21 (16), Babar Azam 14 (14)

35-0 after 5 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 1 run

34-0 after 4.5 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 4 runs

30-0 after 4.4 overs: Shami to Babar, 1 run

29-0 after 4.3 overs: Shami to Babar, 4 runs

25-0 after 4.2 overs: Shami to Babar, no run

25-0 after 4.1 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 1 run

Babar Azam 9 (11), Mohammad Rizwan 15 (13)

24-0 after 4 overs: Varun to Babar, no run

24-0 after 3.5 overs: Varun to Babar, no run

24-0 after 3.4 overs: Varun to Babar, no run

24-0 after 3.3 overs: Varun to Babar, no run

24-0 after 3.2 overs: Varun to Rizwan, 1 run

23-0 after 3.1 overs: Varun to Babar, 1 run

Mohammad Rizwan 14 (12), Babar Azam 8 (6)

22-0 after 3 overs: Bumrah to Rizwan, no run

22-0 after 2.5 overs: Bumrah to Rizwan, no run

22-0 after 2.4 overs: Bumrah to Babar, 3 runs

19-0 after 2.3 overs: Bumrah to Babar, no run

19-0 after 2.2 overs: Bumrah to Babar, no run

19-0 after 2.1 overs: Bumrah to Rizwan, 1 run

Babar Azam 5 (3), Mohammad Rizwan 13 (9)

18-0 after 2 overs: Shami to Babar, no run

18-0 after 1.5 overs: Shami to Babar, 4 runs

14-0 after 1.4 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 1 run

13-0 after 1.3 overs: Shami to Rizwan, 2 runs

11-0 after 1.2 overs: Shami to Rizwan, no run

11-0 after 1.1 overs: Shami to Babar, 1 run

Mohammad Rizwan 10 (6), Babar Azam 0 (0)

10-0 after 1 over: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, no run

10-0 after 0.5 over: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, no run

10-0 after 0.4 over: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, no run

10-0 after 0.3 over: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, 6 runs

4-0 after 0.2 over: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, 4 runs

0-1 after 0.1 over: Bhuvneshwar to Rizwan, no run

0-0 after 0 over: Start of Pakistan’s run chase

Story at the half: India recovered well from an early Shaheen Afridi salvo to finish with 151-7. Shaheen picked up a wicket in each of his first two overs, first trapping Rohit Sharma for a golden duck in the opening over before trapping Lokesh Rahul in front of wickets in his second over.

After Hasan Ali had Suryakumar Yadav caught for 11, Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant (39) stablished the Indian ship with a 53-run stand for the fourth wicket. As wickets tumbled around him, Kohli hung around and top scored for his side with 57 but was out in the penultimate over, just when a late surge was needed.

Shaheen was the pick of the bowlers (31-3) despite bowling an expensive penultimate over that leaked 17 runs.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar 5 (4), Mohammed Shami 0 (0)

151-7 after 20 overs: Rauf to Bhuvneshwar, 1 run

150-7 after 19.5 overs: Rauf to Bhuvneshwar, 2 runs

148-7 after 19.4 overs: Rauf to Bhuvneshwar, 2 runs

146-7 after 19.3 overs: Rauf to Hardik (16), OUT

146-6 after 19.2 overs: Rauf to Hardik, 2 runs

144-6 after 19.1 overs: Rauf to Hardik, no run

Hardik Pandya 14 (5), Bhuvneshwar Kumar 1 (1)

144-6 after 19 overs: Shaheen to Hardik, 5 runs

138-6 after 19 overs: Shaheen to Hardik, 4 runs

134-6 after 18.5 overs: Shaheen to Bhuvneshwar, 1 run

133-6 after 18.4 overs: Shaheen to Kohli (57), OUT

133-5 after 18.3 overs: Shaheen to Hardik, 1 run

132-5 after 18.2 overs: Shaheen to Hardik, 4 runs

128-5 after 18.1 overs: Shaheen to Hardik, no run

128-5 after 18.1 overs: Shaheen to Hardik, 1 run

Virat Kohli 57 (48), Hardik Pandya 0 (0)

127-5 after 18 overs: Hasan to Kohli, 2 runs

125-5 after 17.5 overs: Hasan to Jadeja (13), OUT

125-4 after 17.4 overs: Hasan to Jadeja, 4 runs

121-4 after 17.3 overs: Hasan to Kohli, 1 run

120-4 after 17.2 overs: Hasan to Kohli, 4 runs

116-4 after 17.1 overs: Hasan to Kohli, 2 runs

Virat Kohli 48 (44), Ravindra Jadeja 9 (11)

114-4 after 17 overs: Rauf to Kohli, 1 run

113-4 after 16.5 overs: Rauf to Kohli, no run

113-4 after 16.4 overs: Rauf to Kohli, no run

113-4 after 16.3 overs: Rauf to Jadeja, 1 run

112-4 after 16.2 overs: Rauf to Kohli, 1 run

111-4 after 16.1 overs: Rauf to Jadeja, 1 run

Ravindra Jadeja 7 (9), Virat Kohli 46 (40)

110-4 after 16 overs: Hasan to Jadeja, 1 run

109-4 after 15.5 overs: Hasan to Kohli, 1 run

108-4 after 15.4 overs: Hasan to Kohli, 4 runs

104-4 after 15.3 overs: Hasan to Kohli, no run

104-4 after 15.2 overs: Hasan to Kohli, 4 runs

100-4 after 15.1 overs: Hasan to Kohli, no run

Virat Kohli 37 (35), Ravindra Jadeja 6 (8)

100-4 after 15 overs: Shadab to Kohli, 1 run

99-4 after 14.5 overs: Shadab to Jadeja, 1 run

98-4 after 14.4 overs: Shadab to Kohli, 1 run

97-4 after 14.3 overs: Shadab to Jadeja, 1 run

96-4 after 14.2 overs: Shadab to Jadeja, no run

96-4 after 14.1 overs: Shadab to Jadeja, no run

Virat Kohli 35 (33), Ravindra Jadeja 4 (4)

96-4 after 14 overs: Rauf to Kohli, no run

96-4 after 13.5 overs: Rauf to Kohli, 4 runs

92-4 after 13.5 overs: Rauf to Kohli, 1 run

91-4 after 13.4 overs: Rauf to Jadeja, 1 run

90-4 after 13.3 overs: Rauf to Jadeja, 2 runs

88-4 after 13.2 overs: Rauf to Jadeja, no run

88-4 after 13.1 overs: Rauf to Kohli, 1 run

Virat Kohli 30 (30), Ravindra Jadeja 1 (1)

87-4 after 13 overs: Shadab to Kohli, 1 run

86-4 after 12.5 overs: Shadab to Jadeja, 1 run

85-4 after 12.4 overs: Shadab to Kohli, 1 run

84-4 after 12.3 overs: Shadab to Kohli, no run

84-4 after 12.2 overs: Shadab to Pant (39), OUT

83-3 after 12.1 overs: Shadab to Pant, 2 runs

Virat Kohli 28 (27), Rishabh Pant 37 (28)

81-3 after 12 overs: Hasan to Kohli, no run

81-3 after 11.5 overs: Hasan to Pant, 1 run

80-3 after 11.4 overs: Hasan to Pant, 2 runs

78-3 after 11.3 overs: Hasan to Pant, 6 RUNS

72-3 after 11.2 overs: Hasan to Pant, 6 RUNS

66-3 after 11.1 overs: Hasan to Pant, no run

Rishabh Pant 22 (23), Virat Kohli 28 (26)

66-3 after 11 overs: Rauf to Pant, 1 run

65-3 after 10.5 overs: Rauf to Pant, no run

64-3 after 10.4 overs: Rauf to Kohli, 1 run

63-3 after 10.3 overs: Rauf to Pant, 1 run

62-3 after 10.2 overs: Rauf to Kohli, 1 run

61-3 after 10.1 overs: Rauf to Pant, 1 run

Rishabh Pant 19 (19), Virat Kohli 26 (24)

60-3 after 10 overs: Hafeez to Pant, 1 run

59-3 after 9.5 overs: Hafeez to Pant, 0 run

59-3 after 9.4 overs: Hafeez to Pant, 1 run

58-3 after 9.3 overs: Hafeez to Kohli, 1 run

57-3 after 9.2 overs: Hafeez to Pant, 4 runs

53-3 after 9.1 overs: Hafeez to Kohli, 1 run

Rishabh Pant 13 (15) Virat Kohli 24 (22)

52-3 after 9 overs: Shadab to Pant, 4 RUNS

48-3 after 8.5 overs: Shadab to Kohli, 1 runs

47-3 after 8.4 overs: Shadab to Pant, 1 runs

46-3 after 8.3 overs: Shadab to Pant, 2 runs

44-3 after 8.2 overs: Shadab to Pant, 0 run

44-3 after 8.1 overs: Shadab to Kohli, 1 run

Virat Kohli 22 (20) Rishabh Pant 6 (11)

43-3 after 8 overs: Hafeez to Kohli, 1 run

42-3 after 7.5 overs: Hafeez to Pant, 1 run

41-3 after 7.4 overs: Hafeez to Pant, 0 run. Hafeez appeals for caught behind; given not out; review taken and wasted.

41-3 after 7.3 overs: Hafeez to Kohli, 1 run

40-3 after 7.2 overs: Hafeez to Pant, 1 run

39-3 after 7.1 overs: Hafeez to Pant, 0 run

Rishabh Pant 4 (7) Virat Kohli 20 (18)

39-3 after 7 overs: Shadab to Pant, 1 run

38-3 after 6.5 overs: Shadab to Pant, 0 runs

38-3 after 6.4 overs: Shadab to Pant, 2 runs

36-3 after 6.3 overs: Shadab to Pant, no run

36-3 after 6.2 overs: Shadab to Pant, no run

36-3 after 6.1 overs: Shadab to Pant, no run

Virat Kohli 20 (18) Rishabh Pant 1 (1)

36-3 after 6 overs: Hasan to Kohli, 4 RUNS

32-3 after 5.5 overs: Hasan to Pant, 1 run

31-3 after 5.4 overs: Hasan to Yadav (11), OUT

31-2 after 5.3 overs: Hasan to Yadav, 0 run

31-2 after 5.2 overs: Hasan to Kohli, 1 run

30-2 after 5.1 overs: Hasan to Kohli, 0 run

Virat Kohli 15 (15) Suryakumar Yadav 11 (6)

30-2 after 5 overs: Shaheen to Kohli, 1 run

29-2 after 4.5 overs: Shaheen to Kohli, 6 RUNS

23-2 after 4.4 overs: Shaheen to Kohli, 0 runs

23-2 after 4.3 overs: Shaheen to Kohli, 0 runs

23-2 after 4.2 overs: Shaheen to Kohli, 0 runs

23-2 after 4.1 overs: Shaheen to Kohli, 2 runs

Suryakumar Yadav 11 (6) Virat Kohli 6 (9)

21-2 after 4 overs: Wasim to Yadav, 4 RUNS

16-2 after 3.5 overs: Wasim to Kohli, 1 run

15-2 after 3.4 overs: Wasim to Yadav, no run

15-2 after 3.3 overs: Wasim to Kohli, 1 run

14-2 after 3.2 overs: Wasim to Kohli, no run

14-2 after 3.1 overs:Wasim to Kohli, no run

Suryakumar Yadav 7 (4) Virat Kohli 4 (5)

14-2 after 3 overs:Shaheen to Yadav, 6 RUNS

8-2 after 2.5 overs: Shaheen to Kohli, 1 run

7-2 after 2.4 overs: Shaheen to Yadav, 1 run

6-2 after 2.3 overs: Shaheen to Yadav, no run

6-2 after 2.2 overs: Shaheen to Yadav, no run

6-2 after 2.1 overs:Shaheen to Rahul (3), OUT

Virat Kohli 2 (2), KL Rahul 2 (4)

6-1 after 2 overs:Wasim to Rahul, 1 run

5-1 after 1.5 overs:Wasim to Rahul, no run

5-1 after 1.4 overs:Wasim to Kohli, 1 run

4-1 after 1.3 overs: Wasim to Rahul, 1 run

3-1 after 1.2 overs: Wasim to Rahul, no run

3-1 after 1.1 overs: Wasim to Kohli, 1 run

Virat Kohli 1 (2), KL Rahul 1 (3)

2-1 after 1 over: Shaheen to Kohli, 1 run

1-1 after 0.5 over: Shaheen to Kohli, no run

1-1 after 0.4 over: Shaheen to Sharma (0), OUT LBW

1-0 after 0.3 over: Shaheen to Rahul, 1 run

0-0 after 0.2 over: Shaheen to Rahul, no run

0-0 after 0.1 over: Shaheen to Rahul, no run

0-0 after 0 over: The first ball of the match is about to be bowled.

6:39pm: Line-ups are in:

Pakistan: 1 Babar Azam (capt) 2 Mohammad Rizwan (wk) 3 Fakhar Zaman 4 Mohammad Hafeez 5 Shoaib Malik 6 Asif Ali 7 Shadab Khan 8 Imad Wasim 9 Hasan Ali 10 Haris Rauf 11 Shaheen Shah Afridi

India: 1 KL Rahul 2 Rohit Sharma 3 Virat Kohli (capt) 4 Suryakumar Yadav 5 Rishabh Pant (wk) 6 Hardik Pandya 7 Ravindra Jadeja 8 Bhuvneshwar Kumar 9 Varun Chakravarthy 10 Mohammed Shami 11 Jasprit Bumrah

Fans gather outside the Dubai International Cricket Stadium before the start of the match between Pakistan and India.

Pakistan thrashed India by 10 wickets in their T20 World Cup2021 fixture in Dubai on Sunday. Here are our five takeaways from the match. In sports and everything, unless it’s a law or a principle, nothing lasts forever. Dominant teams, serial winners, unbeaten players — all eventually meet their match or are caught on their off day someday. For disappointed Pakistani fans to think their team would never beat India in a World Cup match was wrong. And for Indians fans to think their team would never lose to Pakistan in a World Cup fixture was also wrong.All trends, all hoodoos, all everything come to an end if you stay in the business long enough. One thing that is known to happen when one team breaks a psychological barrier or gets the proverbial monkey off their backs is a streak in the other direction. Could that happen here? Could Pakistan now begin a streak of their own against India? We’d find that out in the T20 World Cup next year — or even in the World Cup final of the ongoing tournament. This current crop of Pakistan team has three clear superstars. One is Babar Azam, next is Mohammad Rizwan and then comes Shaheen Afridi. All three delivered last night. It was Shaheen’s double-wicket salvo up top that put India on the backfoot early and set the tone for the entire match. Then, Babar and Rizwan batted from start to finish to make the chase appear as a cakewalk.There are other talents around them but the spine of this Pakistan team is formed by a batsman, a wicketkeeper and a pacer. These are the three we look for inspiration, bailouts and breakthroughs. What we get from them is our right. What we get from others is a bonus. This and many more Pakistan squads should revolve around the core of Babar, Rizwan and Shaheen. This game had its unsung heroes in Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan but the Fab 3 were in a league of their own. Of the 152 runs scored by Pakistan, only 78 came off boundaries. The pairing of Babar and Rizwan had to run for 71 runs, while four runs came from wides. This shows that despite the perception around it, T20 matches are not all about boundaries. The old-fashioned running for runs also does it. Of course, you need super-fit batsmen to do that, and fortunately, Babar and Rizwan’s conditioning was superb. One player in or out would not have made a difference as India were dominating in all facets of the game but even then, it needs a mention. Hardik Pandya’s continued existence in this Indian line-up has to be one of the weirdest selections around. He is someone billed as an allrounder but does not bat, which renders him exactly what? A specialist batsman for the number seven position? Kohli’s insistence of sticking with Pandya for reasons unknown instead of picking the in-form Ishan Kishan made little sense, and for which he’d be deservedly panned. With apologies to India, Pakistan fans deserved and needed this one much more. There is a mob heading towards the national capital, there are signs indicating a civil-military rift, a ‘petrol bomb’ was recently dropped, electricity rates have gone through the roof, a gas crisis is on the horizon, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) just wouldn’t let us go, and there is trouble brewing in neighbouring Afghanistan. In the midst of all that, the win over India allows the entire country to forget the troubles of their routine life.

For a few days at least, Pakistan cricket fans would wake up feeling content and happy with their lives, for they’ve already won the World Cup match they wanted to win. The actual World Cup does not matter anymore and would be a bonus if it actually is clinched.

Pakistan beat India by 10 wickets for the first time ever in World Cup history on Sunday night, and Twitter has exploded. While some gushed at the batting prowess of captain Babar Azam and his opening partner Mohammad Rizwan, others swooned at Shaheen Shah Afridi’s explosive bowling spell.

Overall, the Pakistani team put up a flawless performance, giving them a solid start to the T20 World Cup tour.

Names from the cricketing world, politicians and everyday cricket-worshipping Pakistanis showered their praise on Babar Azam’s eleven in emotion-filled messages.

Pakistan Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa lauded the team’s “outstanding performance and comprehensive win” against India, saying “Pakistan Cricket Team has made us all proud.”

President of Pakistan Dr Arif Alvi also congratulated the team, calling the 10-wicket win a “total Wipeout”.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan shared a picture on Twitter watching the match along with various other government figures and ministers, saying the entire nation was proud of the Pakistan team.”Congratulations to the Pakistan Team [and] especially to Babar Azam who led from the front, as well as to the brilliant performances of Rizwan [and] Shaheen Afridi,” he tweeted. Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari, meanwhile, noted that it was a “cool, calculated game. Senator Faisal Javed Khan hailed the Pakistan team’s “passion and professionalism”, noting that they had kept India under pressure throughout the game.

In a light-hearted comment, PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif while praising Pakistan said “the match was so good that there was no match between the two teams.” “What a convincing [and] resounding victory Team Pakistan! Well done champs,” tweeted PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz. “. PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari also tweeted his congratulations to the team.

Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ramiz Raja called the win over India ” Alhamdolilla…It’s the first one, the most magnificent one but remember journey has just begun. such a proud moment for all Pakistanis and thank you boys for providing us this moment to cherish. Best of luck to you boys for the WC campaign. Just remember millions of hearts beat with you and millions more are praying for you.#PakistanZindabad  ,” he tweeted.

Former fast-bowler Shoaib Akhtar said dismissing a strong Indian batting line-up was a “big achievement “He urged the team to stay positive and “go in with the bat” in the matches to come. Senior Cricket journalist Asghar Ali Mubarak said Azam and Rizwan had exhibited ” Be ready’ ‘’There will be another competition in the final.’Rizwan and cricketer Azam’s match winning performance is more important than winning theT20 World Cup.

More over Pakistan skipper Babar Azam on Monday said he and his players were “proud” to have made history by beating India for the first time in a World Cup match. Pakistan humiliated their arch-rivals, romping to a ten-wicket victory in the Twenty20 World Cup in Dubai on Sunday, sparking starkly contrasting reactions. The win was Pakistan’s first in 13 World Cup matches (seven in the 50 over World Cup and six in the Twenty20 World Cup) dating back to 1992 in Australia. “It is definitely a proud moment for me as well as for all my players that we have made history,” Babar told media. Lanky paceman Shaheen Shah Afridi put India on the back foot from the start with the wickets of openers Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul off his first seven deliveries. He finished with 3-31 after dismissing India’s top scorer, skipper Virat Kohli, for 57 in a total of 151-7 in 20 overs. Babar along with fellow opener Mohammad Rizwan knocked off the target in 17.5 overs without losing a single wicket. Babar hit 68 not out while Rizwan finished with an undefeated 79.“We realize how important and how much needed that win is as everyone wanted us to win and to have made history is one of the defining moments in our careers,” Babar said. “I had said before the match that records are meant to be broken so we have broken that jinx and we are very happy; in fact, the whole country is happy and celebrating.” Babar said the ‘special’ match was as usual of high intensity. “All of us know that when Pakistan plays India there is very high intensity and it’s a pressure game,” he said. “The whole world waits for this match, so it is a special match.”’Keep things simple’ Babar admitted the noise in the stadium made his task of arranging his fielders tough. “The stadium was nearly packed,” said Babar of the Dubai stadium where a 70 per cent crowd was allowed in under relaxed Covid-19 restrictions. “There was so much noise in the stadium that I found it tough to call my players, I told them to keep looking at me so that I can move the fielders in between overs. “We have gelled well over the years so we are used to that. The response from the players was extraordinary. We got a head start in bowling when Shaheen got us wickets and then we batted as per our plan.” This was Pakistan’s first ten wicket win in all Twenty20 internationals and the first defeat by this margin for India. Babar said he had been part of two defeats against India, in the Junior World Cup in Australia in 2012 as skipper and then at the 2019 World Cup in England. “I remember that we lost to India in the quarter finals of the Junior World Cup in 2012 so it was a much-desired thing to beat India,” he said. Babar said his team prepared well ahead of the tournament, despite New Zealand abandoning a tour due to a security alert last month without playing any of the eight limited over games scheduled.England followed suit in withdrawing its men’s and women’s teams from touring ahead of the Twenty20 World Cup. “We prepared well in the National Twenty20 in Pakistan,” Babar said. “Our plan was to keep things simple and through that we effected that turn around.” Pakistan next plays New Zealand in Sharjah on Tuesday. According to the official site for the T20 World Cup, Babar and Rizwan’s 152-run partnership was the biggest opening partnership in the history of the men’s T20 World Cup and Pakistan’s second-biggest partnership in a T20 International for any wicket. Sunday’s explosive performance by the two cricketers overtook the previous record — 145 runs by West Indies’ Chris Gayle and Devon Smith against South Africa in 2007. The third spot on the current ranking is also occupied by Pakistan, with Kamran Akmal and Salman Butt scoring 142 runs against Bangladesh in 2010. “It was a partnership of the absolute highest quality, coming in both players’ T20 World Cup debuts, with neither having made the Pakistan squad five years ago,” the report said. In addition, Babar and Rizwan’s 152 is the second-biggest partnership for any wicket in men’s T20 World Cup history, 14 runs shy of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene’s 166 against West Indies in 2010, the report said.The partnership is also the biggest for any wicket in a T20I against India, it added.