India vs Pakistan, Asia Cup 2022: 'Not one for the faint hearted', Twitterati hail Men in Blue's thrilling victory

Rohit Sharma-led Team India edged Pakistan in a thriller in Match 2 of the Asia Cup 2022 tournament in the United Arab Emirates. The Men in Blue overcame a scare against the arch-rivals Pakistan, with Virat Kohli (35), Ravindra Jadeja (35) and Hardik Pandya (33*) playing vital roles with the bat to help India win by five wickets and a ball to spare.

The win helped India earn their first points in the continental tournament.

India won the toss and asked Pakistan to bat first. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, with figures of 4/26, was the star of India’s bowling attack, and he received good support from Hardik Pandya (3/35), Arshdeep Singh (2/33) and Avesh Khan (1/19) as well. Mohammad Rizwan, with 43 runs, was Pakistan’s top-scorers as they were all out for 147.

In reply, India endured a forgettable start as KL Rahul was dismissed by T20I debutant Naseem Shah for a golden duck. Virat Kohli, returning to competitive action in more than a month, came in at number three and showed glimpses of a potential return to form with a 34-ball knock of 35. Kohli got off to a nervy start early on, even getting dropped by Fakhar Zaman at second slip on one occasion.

Kohli and Rohit were involved in a 49-run stand for the second wicket before the India skipper was dismissed for 12.

With India needing seven off the last six balls, Nawaz came into attack for the final over. He got rid of Jadeja early to put India on the backfoot again, but new batter Dinesh Karthik rotated strike to Hardik with a single, and Hardik did the rest, hitting over long-on for a six in the penultimate ball of the match to clinch the win for India.

Here’s how Twitterati reacted to India’s victory:

Special Win from Team India, @hardikpandya7, @BhuviOfficial, @imjadeja all superb