COLOMBO — The dark clouds hovering over the R. Premadasa Stadium threatened to spoil the party, but nothing could dampen the spirit of the thousands of Indian fans who painted Colombo blue on Sunday night. In what was billed as the “Mother of All Battles,” India delivered a masterclass, dismantling Pakistan by 61 runs to seal their Super 8 qualification in style.
The toss was perhaps the only thing that went Pakistan’s way. Captain Salman Ali Agha elected to bowl, hoping to exploit the overcast conditions and the moisture in the pitch. However, India’s openers had other plans. Abhishek Sharma, continuing his fearless brand of cricket, launched a blistering counter-attack, smashing 45 off just 23 balls to negate the swing of Shaheen Afridi.
While Pakistan clawed back briefly with two quick wickets, it was the Indian skipper, Suryakumar Yadav, who changed the complexion of the game. Displaying his trademark “360-degree” play, Yadav anchored the innings with a majestic 72 off 44 balls. He found an able ally in Hardik Pandya, whose late flourish propelled India to a commanding total of 186/6.
Chasing 187 on a surface that was starting to grip was always going to be a tall order for Pakistan, and the pressure of the scoreboard weighed heavy from ball one. Jasprit Bumrah provided the early breakthrough, removing the dangerous Babar Azam cheaply, silencing the Pakistani contingent.
From there, it was the “Kul-Cha” show. Kuldeep Yadav (4/22) spun a web around the middle order, leaving the Pakistani batters bewildered. The ball turned, dipped, and fizzed past the edges, exposing Pakistan’s struggle against high-quality wrist spin. Despite a gritty 30 from Mohammad Rizwan, the chase never really took off.
The final nail in the coffin came in the 17th over when Arshdeep Singh cleaned up the tail, bowling Pakistan out for a paltry 125.
“We knew the pitch would slow down,” Suryakumar Yadav said at the post-match presentation. “The intent from the openers gave us the cushion to play freely. It’s always special to win against Pakistan, but the job isn’t done yet. We have our eyes on the trophy.”
For Pakistan, it is back to the drawing board as they now face a must-win situation in their remaining group games. For India, however, Colombo was just another fortress conquered.
