India vs Pakistan, Asia Cup Highlights: Abhishek Sharma - Shubman Gill guide India to six-wicket triumph over PAK

India vs Pakistan, Super 4 Asia Cup: India beat Pakistan by six wickets in the Asia Cup Super 4 clash. They chased down a target of 172 runs with seven balls to spare. Abhishek Sharma was the standout performer for India, smashing a blistering 74 off 39 balls. He along with Shubhman Gull put a vital partnership that powered Men In Blue through the first half of the chase. Despite losing Gill and skipper Suryakumar Yadav cheaply, India never lost momentum as Sharma's calculated aggression and the steady support of the middle order kept the match in India's favour.

After Sharma’s departure, Sanju Samson and Tilak Verma took the chase forward cautiously, adding crucial runs while keeping wickets in hand. Hardik Pandya then entered in style with Tilak Verma signing off in style with a six and a four. With this win, India have now beaten Pakistan twice in just eight days, asserting their dominance in the tournament and keeping their Asia Cup campaign firmly on track.

Earlier, the Men in Blue need 172 runs to win the Super 4 clash against Pakistan at the Dubai International Stadium. Hardik Pandya removed Fakhar Zaman on 15 runs after Suryakumar Yadav opted to bowl first.

After his dismissal, Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan forged a 72-run partnership for the second wicket. Pakistan smashed 91 runs off the first 10 overs, with Farhan taking the attack to Bumrah, who went for 34 off his first three overs.

But their innings lost momentum when Dube came onto bowl and picked up two wickets. He did a great job with Chakaravarthy to pull things back in India's favour as Pakistan went without a boundary for more than six overs in that phase. They managed to score 42 runs in the last three overs and posted a good target on the scoreboard.

India hammer Pakistan twice in just eight days, chasing down a target of 172 runs with 6 wickets and 7 balls to spare. Tilak Verma finishes in style, striking a six and a four to seal the win. 

Bye! That’s all for today - stay tuned with us for more updates from the Asia Cup 2025 in coming days!

Hardik Pandya and Tilak Verma keep rotating the strike with Tilak smashing a six off Faheem Ashraf’s second ball. India are closing in on the finish line.

IND 163/4 (18 overs)

Hardik Pandya walks in and launches his innings in style, smashing a four off Haris Rauf’s first ball. 

Haris Rauf strikes, bowling Sanju Samson for 13 off 17 balls, bringing an end to a scratchy innings.

IND 148/4 (16.4 overs)

Sanju Samson and Tilak Verma take a measured approach against Faheem Ashraf after Abhishek's wicket, adding six runs in the over as India keep the chase on track.

Abrar Ahmad’s clever googly deceives Abhishek, and Rauf takes a brilliant catch. India lose their set batter, who walks off after a 74-run knock off 39 balls but the middle-order is ready to finish the chase.

IND 126-3 (13 overs)

Abhishek Sharma is in fine touch, hitting two fours off Faheem Ashraf. Despite the fall of two wickets, he keeps India ticking in the chase.

Haris Rauf outsmarts SKY, drawing a leading edge that flies to Abrar at deep third. Pakistan strike back-to-back to pull things back.

IND 106/2 (11 overs)

Faheem Ashraf strikes with a beauty, sneaking one through the gap to rattle Gill’s stumps. Pakistan finally get the breakthrough.

IND 105-1 (10 overs)

At 9.4 overs, the Men in Blue are just 67 runs away from the target as the players take a drinks break. The physio also walks in to check on Gill, but India continues to race along in the chase.

Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma put together the tournament’s first century partnership for any wicket. Their brilliant partnership is powering India closer to the 172-run chase.

Abhishek Sharma races to his half-century in just 24 balls. He celebrates with the bat raised toward the dugout and blows flying kisses. The effort draws applause from the head coach and skipper. With this knock, he moves to third on the list of fastest fifties in IND-PAK T20Is (by balls).

IND 96/0 (8 overs)

Young Indian batters are showing no signs of backing down. Both Haris Rauf and Shaheen Afridi tried to get under their skin with a few words, but the Indian openers responded with their bats and calm composure.

IND 69/0 (6 overs)

India’s opener isn’t holding back. After a steady start, he steps out to Abrar Ahmad and shows no hesitation in taking him on. The intent is clear that Men In Blue are aiming to keep the pressure on Pakistan during powerplay.

Shaheen Shah Afridi stares down Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill, but the Indian openers took him for 21 runs in his first two overs. He even exchanged words with Gill after the final ball of the over.

Shaheen Afridi bends his back and digs one in with extra bounce. Abhishek, late on the pull, skies it awkwardly toward mid-wicket. Nawaz makes good ground to his right but gets fingertips on it. 

IND 21/0 (2.3 overs)

After India picked up nine runs in the opening over, vice-captain Shubman Gill wasted no time in stepping on the gas. Facing Saim Ayub, who has been a standout with his off-spin for Pakistan, Gill cracked consecutive boundaries to set the tone.

IND 19/0 (2 overs)

Shaheen Afridi’s trademark new-ball ploy is to pitch it up. This time he goes short trying to catch Abhishek Sharma off guard but the Indian opener had enough time to rock back and nail the pull over fine leg. 

The Men in Blue need 172 runs to win the Super 4 match against Pakistan. 14 runs from Hardik Pandya's last over. Faheem Ashraf hits a boundary through short third man on the second ball. He smashes another maximum over backward point on the last ball. Pakistan regain some of the lost confidence with the last three overs going for 42. We'll be back with the chase shortly.

11 runs and a wicket from Jasprit Bumrah's over. Nawaz gets run-out on the third delivery. Faheem Ashraf smashes a maximum over fine leg on the very next delivery, and takes 2 runs on the fifth ball.

Expensive over from Shivam Dube. He concedes 17 runs in the over. Nawaz hits a maximum over midwicket on the first ball. He hits another boundary through short third man on the delivery.  Dube gives away 5 runs on the last three balls to complete the over.

Varun Chakaravarthy gives away just 2 runs in the over, and Kuldeep gives away 8 runs in the next over. Salman Agha smashes a maximum over long-on on the very first delivery. This is the first time in 12 T20I matches that Varun Chakaravarthy has gone wicketless. 

Shivam Dube dismisses Sahibzada Farhan for 58 runs. He bowls a slower length ball delivery quite wide outside off, and the batter tries reaching out for a shot, but ends up slicing it off the toe-end and Surya takes a simple catch at extra cover.  Just 4 runs and a wicket from the over.

PAK 119/4 (15 overs)

Kuldeep Yadav dismisses Hussain Talat for 10 runs. Floated up delivery just outside off, and Talat plays a reverse-sweep. A simple catch for Chakaravarthy at short third, and he makes no mistake. Five runs and a wicket from the over.

PAK 115/3 (14 overs)

Another good over for the Men in Blue. Shivam Dube gives away just seven runs in his second over.

Varun Chakaravarthy is back in the attack and concedes just seven runs in the over. Good over for India.

Shivam Dube dismisses Saim Ayub for 21 runs. He bowls a back-of-a-length delivery and Ayub goes for a big shot. He gets a thick top-edge, and Abhishek takes a brilliant catch. Just five runs and a wicket from the over.

PAK 96/2 (11 overs)

Axar Patel comes into the attack and concedes 8 runs in the over. Farhan smashes a maximum over midwicket and completes his fifty. Drinks break!!

Two good overs for Pakistan. Chakaravarthy gives away 10 runs in the 8th over, and Kuldeep concedes 13 runs in the next over. Saim Ayub smashes a straight maximum on the first ball. Farhan hits the second six of the over over long-on on the fourth ball.

Kuldeep Yadav comes into the attack and gives away just five runs. 55/1 is Pakistan's highest total in powerplay against India in 15 T20Is, overtaking 54/0 in Ahmedabad in 2012.

Another expensive over from Bumrah. Farhan smashes a boundary through midwicket on the second ball. He hits another brilliant shot for a boundary over mid-off on the last ball. 13 runs from the over. This is the highest Powerplay total against India in Asia Cup 2025

Varun Chakaravarthy comes into the attack and concedes six runs in the over. Kuldeep Yadav drops a simple catch of Saim Ayub on the fourth delivery. Farhan smashes a boundary over slips on the last ball.

10 runs from Jasprit Bumrah's over. Sahibzada Farhan smashes a boundary through square leg on the first delivery. He hits another boundary on the fifth ball.

Hardik Pandya dismisses Fakhar Zaman on 15 runs. An off-cutter delivery from Hardik. He rolls his fingers across it, grips a tiny bit off a length, and the edge is found by the keeper. Fakhar is hanging around as the umpires check if the ball carried into the gloves, and the decision is OUT. A wicket and 9 runs from the over.

PAK 26/1 (3 overs)

Jasprit Bumrah comes in the attack and gives away 11 runs in the over. Fakhar Zaman is looking to play attacking cricket and smashes Bumrah for two consecutive boundaries. He hits a boundary behind square on the the third ball and again smashes a four through mid-off on the very next delivery.

Hardik Pandya concedes six runs in the opening over the match. Abhishek Sharma drops a simple catch at third man on third delivery, and spills an early opportunity. 

Fakhar Zaman and Sahibzada Farhan are at the crease. Hardik Pandya will open the attack for India. Time for live action.

"We'll bowl first. Looks a nice track and yesterday there was dew. Since first round we were thinking we're playing a knockout tournament, nothing changes. That was a completely different wicket (in Abu Dhabi). Quite normal, just another game. Bumrah and Varun come back for Arshdeep and Harshit" Suryakumar said at the toss.

India: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Sanju Samson(w), Suryakumar Yadav(c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy

Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha(c), Hussain Talat, Mohammad Haris(w), Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed

India won the toss and opted to bowl first at the Dubai International Stadium. No handshake again between Suryakumar Yadav and Salman Agha.

After giving all batters and part-time bowlers an opportunity against Oman, the Men in Blue are now expected to return to full strength. Jasprit Bumrah and Varun Chakaravarthy are expected to return in the Playing XI.

There was some concern over Axar Patel who hurt his head in the last match against Oman. According to Cricbuzz, he's currently out in the ground with a bat in hand and taking throwdowns.

The pitch is the same as the previous India-Pakistan match. The groundsmen removed the covers with four hours to go before the match start, and since then, the surface has undergone plenty of rolling. It's a very hot day in Dubai, but the temperature will cool down in the evening, and there might be a chance for some dew, which might affect the skipper's decision to win the toss and bowl first.

The Indian team has not reached the venue yet and is still stuck in Dubai traffic. Whereas the Pakistan team has already arrived in the stadium.

"If we talk about rivalry against Pakistan, I don’t know what kind of rivalry you are talking about. After going on the ground, I feel that the stadium is full. And when the stadium is full, I tell my team and everyone that it is time for entertainment. So many people have come to watch the match, so you have to entertain everyone," said Suryakumar Yadav, India captain.

The Dubai pitch has generally aided spinners over the years, and it looks similar to the previous games with another slow and dry surface. The boundaries are equal on both sides, and the game might be played at the centre pitch, which was used for the last Indo-Pak clash.

The toss will not be a decisive factor at this venue, as out of seven games in the ongoing Asia Cup, the batting-first team won thrice, and the chasing side emerged victorious on four occasions.

Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Haris(w), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha(c), Khushdil Shah, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed

Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy.

India and Pakistan have played 14 T20I matches against each other, with the Men in Blue winning 11 out of them, while Pakistan won only three.

Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Haris(w), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha(c), Khushdil Shah, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed, Hussain Talat, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Salman Mirza, Sufiyan Muqeem

Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Sanju Samson(w), Suryakumar Yadav(c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Jitesh Sharma, Rinku Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy

A very good evening to all the cricket fans. Tonight, all eyes are on the Dubai International Stadium as India take on Pakistan in the 2025 Asia Cup Super 4 match. After India’s dominant 7-wicket victory over Pakistan in the group stage, tensions have been running high. With the rivalry more intense than ever, expect fireworks both on and off the field tonight!