India vs Pakistan LIVE: T20 World Cup final score, result and reaction today
Pakistan beat great rivals India in T20 World Cup showdown
Captain Babar Azam led by example as Pakistan beat India in a World Cup showdown for the first time ever with a 10-wicket romp in a Super 12 blockbuster at the Twenty20 World Cup on Sunday.
Virat Kohli played a captain’s knock of 57 to rescue India from a top-order wobble and help them post a competitive 151-7 in a rematch of the inaugural 2007 final.
His counterpart Babar combined with Mohammad Rizwan to get Pakistan off to a flying start and then overwhelmed the target with 13 balls to spare to snap India’s 100% win record against them in limited-overs World Cups.
Babar remained not out on 68, while Rizwan made an unbeaten 79.
Wary of the dew factor, captains have preferred to field and Babar too followed that trend after winning the toss.
Pakistan did not have to wait long for a breakthrough as Shaheen Afridi (3-31) struck twice in his first seven deliveries to rattle India.
The left-arm pacer fired in a searing yorker-length delivery to dismiss Rohit Sharma lbw for a golden duck and, in his next over, rifled one through KL Rahul’s gate to rearrange the stumps.
Suryakumar Yadav hit Afridi for a six but Rizwan took a diving catch behind the stumps to dismiss the batsman and reduce India to 31-3 in the sixth over.
Kohli and Rishabh Pant calmed nerves in the Indian camp and guided the team to 60-3 at the halfway stage of the innings.
Pant then decided to counter-attack and hit Hasan Ali for back-to-back sixes but his ultra-aggression ultimately did him in.
Shadab Khan foxed Pant with a googly to induce a skier which the spinner caught himself to dismiss the batsman for 39.
Kohli fell in the penultimate over of the innings trying to accelerate but India still made the 150-mark.
Pakistan, in their reply, not only kept their wickets intact in the powerplay overs but also scored briskly with Babar and Rizwan effectively killing off the contest with their rock-solid stand.
Babar brought up his fifty in style, hitting spinner Varun Chakravarthy for a six, while Rizwan reached his own fifty with a pulled boundary off Jasprit Bumrah.
Pakistan 150-0 (17.3)
Driven to long-on for a single. Over to the captain with the 150 partnership up. This has been faultless.
FOUR! AND FOUR MORE! Pakistan 149-0 (17.2), 3 off 15 required
Four more! After a brief delay while more fans make their way out by the sightscreen, a swipe past midwicket from Rizwan and Pakistan move ever nearer.
Have another! Fine of the square leg fielder on the fence, Pakistan one stroke away...
SIX! Pakistan 141-0 (17.1), 11 off 17 required.
And it is made to look an immediate error! An attempted yorker slips out of Shami’s hands and Rizwan hoists it high over fine leg from his hip, just evading a group of Indian fans who have begun to make their way for the exit!
17 needed off 18
Right, how does Virat Kohli play this? 17 neeeded off 18 - surely it is Jasprit Bumrah time? Yes...no! He had the ball in his hands but re-dons his cap as Mohammed Shami instead marks his run-up.
Pakistan 135-0 (17), M Rizwan 63 (51), B Azam 66 (51)
This is now the highest opening partnership in men’s T20 international cricket against India, and on these two go.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar is somewhat harshly penalised with a wide as he tries to hid the ball out of hitting reach, but umpire Chris Gaffaney evens things up by baffling Babar with his decision not to give him an extra ball with a particularly wide close to the over from Kumar. The Pakistan captain had taken a step across, actually - maybe that is far enough from the New Zealander.
Pakistan 131-0 (16.3)
For a player of such timing that was a bit of a bludgeon from Babar Azam, fortunate that his timing is so horrific that Suryakumar Yadav is gathering a stopping ball from the floor rather than claiming a catch.
A wide moves Pakistan one run closer. 21 off 21.
Pakistan 128-0 (16), M Rizwan 61 (48), B Azam 63 (48)
And there is the rarest of beasts - an outright miss from Mohammad Rizwan, struck on the pad as he tries to flick a Shami cutter. Pakistan still manage to pilfer a single as the ball burrows at his feet.
A fine enough over from Shami but Pakistan still take seven from it to leave 24 off the last four - a single every ball would do it.
FOUR! Pakistan 125-0 (15.1)
More of the same! Another ball short of a length from the returning Mohammed Shami, and his near namesake Rizwan is quickly getting in line for another of those gorgeous pull shots. Four more to the tally, scorer!
Pakistan 121-0 (15), M Rizwan 56 (44), B Azam 62 (46)
This really has been properly good from Pakistan. They haven’t offered a single chance on a surface that India found difficult to score upon. ESPNCricinfo has Mohammad Rizwan with a control percentage of 98%, by the way - I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a higher figure.
50 for Mohammad Rizwan! Pakistan 116-0 (14.2)
Virat Kohli had to go back to Jasprit Bumrah at this juncture but it matters not! Having kept out a yorker, Rizwan is on a back of a length ball in trademark fashion, dispatching it for the midwicket fence with a well-timed pull and celebrating his 50 (41 balls, 3x4, 2x6) with a prayer for the heavens.
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