India-Pakistan, Super 4 Asian Cup: India handed Pakistan a heavy defeat in the first match of the Super 4 Asian Cup after Virat Kohli and KL Rahul scored spectacular hundreds in Colombo on Monday. India's 356 for 2 is the highest team total in a one-day international tournament against Pakistan.
In Short
In the Super 4 of the
Asia Cup 2023, India convincingly
defeated Pakistan by 228 runs. The match, which was delayed due to rain on
Sunday, finally took place on Monday in Colombo. India
set a formidable target of 357 runs for Pakistan to chase. Virat Kohli and KL
Rahul played exceptional innings, scoring centuries and adding an unbroken
partnership of 233 runs for the third wicket. They were supported by Rohit
Sharma and Shubman Gill, who added 121 runs for the opening wicket. In
response, Pakistan struggled to build momentum and were ultimately bowled out
for just 128 runs in 32 overs. India's Kuldeep Yadav played a key role with the
ball, taking wickets and contributing to Pakistan's downfall. Overall, it was a
dominant performance by India, securing a comprehensive victory over their
arch-rivals.
IND v PAK, Asia Cup Super 4s Highlights
Kuldeep
Yadav was the star of India's bowling performance, picking up 5 for 25 in 8
overs. He became only the 5th Indian bowler after Sourav Ganguly, Arshad Ayub,
Venkatesh Prasad and Sachin Tendulkar to pick up a five-wicket haul against
Pakistan in ODIs.
The 228-run margin was India's
largest in ODIs against Pakistan.
Pakistan were listless on the field
and showed no stomach to fight back in the face of the onslaught of Virat Kohli
(122 not out off 94 balls) and KL Rahul (111 not out off 106 balls). Kohli
scored his 47th ODI hundred, broke Sachin Tendulkar's record by becoming the
fastest to reach 13,000 ODI runs and made his 4th consecutive hundred at
Premadasa Stadium. Rahul scored his first hundred against Pakistan and his
first in a one-day international since March 2021 against England.