Defending champion India brushed aside Pakistan by 61 runs in a Group A match on Sunday, securing its place in the Super Eight stage of the Twenty20 World Cup.
The much-anticipated clash between the rivals did not match the buildup. India improved to 8-1 against Pakistan in T20 World Cup meetings and remained unbeaten in the tournament.
Opener Ishan Kishan led the charge with 77, guiding India to 175 for 7 at R. Premadasa Stadium. Pakistan relied heavily on spin, using a six-man slow-bowling attack that delivered 18 of the 20 overs, but India managed the challenge effectively.
Pakistan was bowled out for 114 in 18 overs, handing India its third straight victory.
“India vs. Pakistan is a special game for us and our country. It is a very important game,” player of the match Kishan said. “They had good spinners and we tried to play our shots. It gives us confidence going ahead in the tournament.”
The match went ahead after Pakistan reversed an earlier decision to boycott in solidarity with Bangladesh, which refused to tour India over safety concerns and was replaced by Scotland. Pakistan captain Salman Agha and his India counterpart Suryakumar Yadav did not shake hands at the toss.
India was boosted by the return of Abhishek Sharma, who missed the first two matches with a stomach infection, but he was out for a duck after Salman opened the bowling and trapped him lbw.
Pakistan used three spinners in the powerplay in an attempt to curb India’s scoring. India reached 52 for 1 after six overs.
Kishan countered with aggressive stroke play, reaching his second consecutive half-century of the tournament off 27 balls. Saim Ayub ended Kishan’s 40-ball innings, and India was 92 for 2 at the halfway mark.
Ayub, who finished with 3 for 25, removed Tilak Varma for 25 and Hardik Pandya off successive deliveries to apply pressure.
Suryakumar made 32 and Shivam Dube added 27 as India posted a total that proved beyond Pakistan.
Pakistan became the first team to field six spinners in a T20 World Cup match, but its chase faltered early as it slumped to 13 for 3 in two overs.
Pandya dismissed in-form opener Sahibzada Farhan for a duck, and Jasprit Bumrah removed Ayub and Salman in the same over. Babar Azam fell for five, leaving Pakistan 38 for 4 after the powerplay.
Usman Khan scored 44 but Axar Patel had him stumped to all but end Pakistan’s hopes.
“Our spinners had an off day today,” Salman said. “We always believe in them because they have done well in the last six months. In the first innings, it was tacky and the ball was gripping, but the execution was missing.”
