India lift Asia Cup title again after beating Pakistan

In a thrilling final, India defeated Pakistan by 5 wickets to clinch their ninth Asia Cup crown. Young batter Tilak Varma held his nerves till the very end, guiding his side to victory with a match-winning knock.

Earlier, India’s captain Suryakumar Yadav won the toss and chose to bowl first. Pakistan started well, scoring 45 runs in the Powerplay with their openers. Sahibzada Farhan smashed a 35-ball half-century but couldn’t extend his innings, falling to Varun Chakravarthy after making 57 off 38 balls with 5 fours and 3 sixes. Alongside Fakhar Zaman, Farhan put up an 84-run opening stand off 58 deliveries.

Once the partnership broke, Pakistan began to crumble. Kuldeep Yadav dismissed Zaman-Saim Ayub at 112 and, along with Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah, ripped through the middle and lower order. The batting collapsed like a house of cards, losing 9 wickets for just 33 runs in the space of 44 deliveries. Pakistan were bowled out for 146 in 19.1 overs.

Apart from Farhan, Zaman and Ayub, no other batter managed to reach double digits. Kuldeep Yadav was the pick of the bowlers with 4 for 30 in 4 overs. Bumrah, Varun and Axar chipped in with 2 wickets each.

Chasing 147, India were in early trouble at 20/3. But Tilak Varma and Sanju Samson steadied the innings with a 57-run partnership off 50 balls for the fourth wicket. After Samson’s dismissal, Tilak found another ally in Shivam Dube, adding 60 crucial runs.

With 30 needed off the last 18 balls, India picked up 13 runs from Haris Rauf’s over. Tilak, Dube and Rinku Singh finished the job in style. In the final over, India required 10 runs. Tilak collected 8 from the first two deliveries, before Rinku sealed the win with a boundary. India crossed the line with 2 balls to spare.

Tilak remained unbeaten on 69 off 53 balls, while Dube contributed a vital 33 off 22. For Pakistan, Faheem Ashraf bagged 3 wickets, while Shaheen Afridi and Abrar Ahmed picked one each.