India captain Suryakumar Yadav on Sunday played down the hype around the cricket rivalry with Pakistan after beating their bitter rivals by six wickets in the Asia Cup in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
India rode on a blazing 74 from opener Abhishek Sharma as they chased down a target of 172 in 18.5 overs in the Super Four clash, where they again refused to shake hands with their opponents.
It was India’s second win in the Twenty20 tournament over Pakistan in a week after their group-stage clash.
Photo: Reuters
It was also their 12th in 15 Twenty20 internationals.
Asked if this dominance showed that the rivalry was waning, Suryakumar replied: “You guys should stop asking questions about the rivalry between India, Pakistan. According to me, if two teams play 15, 20 matches and if it is even, then it is a rivalry. 13-0, 10-1, I don’t know what the stat is, but this is not a rivalry anymore.”
Pakistan’s last of three Twenty20 wins over India came in the Asia Cup in Dubai in 2022.
India and Pakistan only play in multinational tournaments as their bilateral ties have been stalled since 2012 over political tensions.
Pakistan rode on a brilliant 45-ball 58 from opener Sahibzada Farhan, but only managed 171-5 after romping to 93-1 in 9.3 overs.
Suryakumar said that India played better cricket as Abishek and Shubman Gill put on a rapid 105 for the opening stand in 9.5 overs.
“I think we were better than them, and also from a bowling point of view,” Suryakumar said. “The catch drop percentage at this venue is so high, and that is part and parcel of the game.”
Suryakumar praised Sharma’s talent.
“He knows what is required of him, what bowlers are going to bowl, that’s a plus point for him. He is learning with every game,” Suryakumar said of the 25-year-old left-hander.
Pakistan captain Salman Agha said that his team had come up 15 to 20 runs short.
“We have yet to play a perfect game in this event,” said Agha, whose team next face Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi today. “After being 91 in 10 overs we lost way, but [I] still feel 171 was a challenging total.”
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