NEW DELHI: India cruised to a commanding seven-wicket win over Pakistan in their Asia Cup clash, chasing down a 128-run target in just 15.5 overs. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav anchored the chase with an unbeaten 47 off 37 balls, while left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav starred with the ball, picking 3/18 to earn the Player of the Match award.Fans of Team India erupted in celebrations after the win, brimming with confidence in the side’s all-round performance.“Pakistan should have practised a little more, bachey the bachey hi reh gye (kids stayed the same). They won the toss and batted first. It was a spinning track and chasing was easier. That is where Pakistan made a mistake,” said one fan.
“A lot of missed catches, they could have stopped some boundaries. Indian batting was good… I think it was an overall team effort by Team India. Abhishek Sharma was really good. I came here from the USA,” said another cricket enthusiast.Put in to bat first, Pakistan collapsed early to 6/2. A 39-run stand between Sahibzada Farhan (40) and Fakhar Zaman (17) offered brief resistance, but regular strikes left them reeling at 97/8. A late flourish from Shaheen Shah Afridi (33*), however, helped them push to 127/9 in their 20 overs.India’s bowlers delivered a clinical performance — Kuldeep bagged three wickets, while Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah took two each, and Hardik Pandya chipped in with one.Chasing 128, India lost two early wickets, but Abhishek Sharma’s blistering 31 off 13 balls gave them momentum. A composed 56-run stand between Suryakumar and Tilak Varma (31) steadied the innings, before Suryakumar and Shivam Dube (10*) finished the job with 25 balls to spare.The win propelled India to the top of Group A, with two wins from as many matches.