Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Left-handed batter Tilak Varma rose to the occasion under immense pressure with an unbeaten 69 and guided India to a five-wicket victory over arch-rivals Pakistan to win the Asia Cup for the ninth time at the Dubai International Stadium on September 28. On a two-paced pitch, Kuldeep Yadav spearheaded India’s stunning turnaround by claiming four wickets, including three scalps in a game-changing 17th over, as Pakistan collapsed from 113/1 to 146 all out in 19.1 overs – losing their last nine wickets for just 33 runs.
The crafty troika of Kuldeep, Axar Patel and Varun Chakaravarthy ran riot by sharing eight wickets as reckless aerial shots led to Pakistan’s dramatic slide. Kuldeep, who went from 23 runs in his first two overs to picking four wickets for just seven runs in his next two overs, was backed by Axar, Chakaravarthy and Bumrah taking two wickets apiece. Coming in with India reeling at 20/3, Tilak delivered an innings of poise and precision under pressure to hit three fours and four sixes in a knock to be remembered for ages. While others faltered, Varma stood tall by anchoring the chase and dished out a masterclass in timing and temperament.
While stitching stands of 57 and 60 with Sanju Samson (24) and Shivam Dube (33), Varma helped India cross the finish line with two balls to spare and sign off from the tournament filled with drama and intensity by winning the trophy as the competition’s lone unbeaten team – incidentally on the day they won the trophy in 2018. In their earlier wins over Pakistan, the openers had carved out a sizeable chunk of the chase. But here, India’s chase was off to a rocky start as Faheem Ashraf rolled in a wide slower ball and the in-form Abhishek Sharma miscued it to mid-on, while skipper Suryakumar Yadav was too early on a drive off Shaheen Shah Afridi’s slower ball and was caught by forward diving mid-off.
