![Tilak seal emphatic win [Source: AFP Photo]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1759084790788_Tilaksealindia'swin.jpg?type=hq)
Tilak seal emphatic win [Source: AFP Photo]
The very first India vs Pakistan Asis Cup final lived up to its expectations as the Men in Blue crossed the hurdle in a nerve-wrecking contest to clinch the match and the tournament. India won the match by 5 wickets as Kuldeep Yadav’s 4-wicket haul and Tilak Varma’s sensational unbeaten 69 off 53 sealed a stellar win for the defending champions.
Pakistan had the upper hand in the second innings, but their bowlers once again let them down as India defeated the Men in Green for the third time in the event.
Kuldeep runs riot with 4-wicket haul
Suryakumar Yadav won the toss and elected to bowl first, and the decision didn’t pay off as the two Pakistan openers, Sahibzada Farhan and Fakhar Zaman, tore apart the Indian bowling attack and gave a fiery start to their team. Sahibzada was the chief aggressor as he took down India’s best bowler, Jasprit Bumrah, with ease.
In the blink of an eye, the right-handed batter raced away to a quick-fire fifty as the platform was set for a big total before Kuldeep came into his own. While Varun Chakravarthy cleaned up the two Pakistan openers, Kuldeep did the damage to the middle order players as Saim Ayub became his first victim with the ball.
He also knocked over Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi, and Faheem Ashraf to bundle out the opponent for a meagre 146 as Kuldeep finished with figures of 4 for 30. In the process, he also became the leading wicket-taker in the history of Asia Cup.
Tilak Varma keeps calm to seal emphatic win
India was expected to chase the total easily, but a nightmare struck as Faheem Ashraf got rid of the dangerous Abhishek Sharma for just 5 runs. Things got worse as Suryakumar Yadav, the batter who was struggling for form, departed for yet another low score (1 off 5).
Shubman Gill, too, crumbled under pressure as India lost three wickets inside 20 runs, with Faheem Ashraf dominating the proceedings. With three down, Tilak Varma and Sanju Samson consolidated the innings with a brief partnership. Both the batters took some time, but then they went after the bowlers as slowly and steadily India got back in the contest. Samson departed for 24, but Tilak counter-punched and scored a gritty fifty to keep India alive in the contest.
Tilak found boundaries at regular intervals, and he was amply supported by Shivam Dube as India needed 10 off the last over, and the Mumbai Indians star, Tilak showed his batting prowess and calculative approach to thrash Haris Rauf and seal an emphatic Asia Cup win for India.
