Asia Cup 2022: Twitter explodes as India defeats Pakistan by five wickets
Twitter explodes as India defeats Pakistan: The fans experienced a whirlwind of emotions as India and Pakistan served a low-scoring thriller at the Dubai International Stadium. The second Asia Cup 2022 fixture saw the momentum going back and forth between the two sides. Hardik Pandya was the only difference as India cruised to a five-wicket win on the third-last ball of the final over.
The high-profile game commenced with Rohit Sharma winning the toss and electing to bowl first. In a shocking decision, the team dropped Rishabh Pant to make way for Dinesh Karthik. Put to bat first, Pakistan had a terrible start.
The skipper and the top T20I batter, Babar Azam, was sent back to the pavilion in the third over by Bhuvneshwar Kumar. He was soon followed by Fakhar Zaman, who lost his wicket at a score of ten. Mohammad Rizwan and Iftikhar Ahmed tried to light up a gloomy Pakistan dugout by stitching a partnership of 45 runs.
Hardik Pandya dismantle Pakistan’s bowling line-up
However, Hardik Pandya emerged as the main villain for the Men in Green as he scalped the wicket of both the set batters. The seamer completed his three-wicket haul by sending Khushdil Shah back. Towards the end, Haris Rauf and Shahnawaz Dahani tried to do some damage control as they played quick-fire knocks of 13 and 16 runs, respectively.
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Indian bowlers folded Pakistan at a score of 147 runs within 19.5 overs. Rizwan was the top-scorer with 43 runs while Bhuvneshwar was the pick of the bowler for India with four wickets.
Hardik Pandya Cool Vikram's Reaction #Vikram #HardikPandya #Cool #MatchWinner #INDvsPAK #AsiaCup2022 pic.twitter.com/pBF8DTLV87
— CriiicWorld (@Criiicworld) August 29, 2022
Chasing a target of 148 runs should have been an easy task for India, considering the batting-friendly conditions in Dubai. However, the exceptional bowling by the Pakistan batters made the life of the Men in Blue difficult.
Virat Kohli shows signs of form
Naseem Shah gave a shocker to India by dismissing KL Rahul in the first over on a golden duck. Mohammad Nawaz also joined the party by sending Rohit Sharma back at a score of 18-ball 12. The former skipper Virat Kohli treated the fans with some delightful shots as he hit three boundaries and one maximum.
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However, Kohli couldn’t prolong his stay and walked back after a knock of 35 runs. Suryakumar Yadav also failed to perform as he added only 18 runs to the scoreboard. In a time of distress, Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya stepped up to take India home.
READ MORE ABOUT VIRAT KOHLI FUTURE
Jadeja smacked 35 runs off 29 balls. However, it was Pandya who stole all the thunder. The 28-year-old made a mockery of the Pakistan bowlers by smashing 33 runs, including four boundaries and one six at a strike rate of 194.12.
As Pandya hit the winning six on the third-last ball of the match, Twitter started buzzing with tweets from both countries. Indian fans went berserk with the victory while the Pakistan fans scrutinized their batters for below-average performance.
Here’s how Twitter reacted
Twitter explodes as India defeats Pakistan
