India maintain perfect ODI World Cup record over Pakistan with massive win

India maintained its unbeaten streak as they defeated Pakistan by 7 wickets in the blockbuster World Cup 2023 fixture in Ahmedabad on Saturday.

The hosts hunted down the meagre 192-run target in 30.3 overs to go 8-0 up against the arch-rivals in the World Cups, and boosted their run rate massively.

Chasing a small total, India were off to a flying start as Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma scored five boundaries in the first two overs.

However, Shaheen Shah Afridi bounced back and removed Gill for his individual score of 16, providing Pakistan with an early breakthrough.

Despite losing his partner, Rohit continued to play aggressively, smashing Pakistani bowlers all over the park.

He built a quick 66-run partnership with Virat Kohli, who was bounced out by Hasan Ali for 18-ball 15 when India were 79/2 in 10 overs.

Rohit stitched another 77-run stand with newcomer Shreyas Iyer for the third wicket. The skipper got out for 86 runs, falling just 14 runs short of a well-deserved hundred.

With the skipper gone, Iyer and KL Rahul played sensibly and completed the run chase in the 31st over without losing any more wickets.

For Pakistan, Shaheen Afridi took two wickets, while Hasan bagged the prize wicket of Virat Kohli.

Indian Innings

• INDIA WIN BY 7 WICKETS!

Shreyas Iyer brings up his 50 with a boundary and also seals the massive win for his side.

India - 165/3 in 25 overs.

Shreyas Iyer - 41*

KL Rahul 6*

• WICKET: Shaheen removes Rohit Sharma for 86.

India 156/3 in 21.4 overs.

• 150 up for India in the 21st over.

India - 142/2 in 20 overs.

Rohit Sharma - 80*

Shreyas Iyer - 28*

India - 111/2 in 15 overs.

Rohit Sharma - 61*

Shreyas Iyer - 16*

• 100 up for India in 13.5 overs.

• 50 up for Rohit Sharma in 35 balls.

• WICKET: Hasan Ali gets Kohli. He departs for 15 runs.

• 50 comes up for India in just 6.4 overs. India - 54/1 in 7 overs.

India - 38/1 in 5 overs.

Rohit Sharma - 16*

Virat Kohli - 5*

• WICKET: Shaheen Afridi gets Shubman Gill. He departs at 16.

India - 23/1 after 2.5 overs.

First Innings

Earlier, Indian bowlers dominated the innings as Pakistan were bundled out for just 191 runs after 42.5 overs.

Pakistan started confidently on a batting wicket, scoring at 5 runs per over. They got to 150 in the 30th over, aiming to get a 300+ score on the board.

However, Indian bowlers bounced back strongly to get the next 8 wickets for just 36 runs, bowling Pakistan out for 191 runs on a flat, batting wicket.

Babar Azam scored 50 off 58 balls, while Rizwan got out on 49. Imam (36), and Abdullah Shafique (20) were other highlights of the innings for Pakistan.

After being put into bat, Pakistan were off to a flying start thanks to a flurry of fours in the first couple of overs.

Openers Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq scored at 5 runs per over before Mohammed Siraj removed Abdullah on the final ball of the eighth over. He was trapped before the wicket for 20 off 24.

Babar Azam and Imam added another 32 runs for the second wicket before Hardik Pandya got Imam caught behind for his 36, leaving Pakistan 73/2 in the 12.3 over.

The skipper was involved in another 82-run partnership with Mohammad Rizwan before being bowled by Siraj.

Soon after, Kuldeep Yadav struck twice to remove Saud Shakil (6) and Iftikhar Ahmed (4).

In his next two overs, Jasprit Bumrah removed Mohammad Rizwan for 49, and Shadab Khan (2), leaving Pakistan 171/7.

Hasan Ali and Mohammad Nawaz put another 16 runs for the eighth wicket, before departing one after another due to the scoreboard pressure.

Haris Rauf was the last wicket to fall as he was trapped before wicket for just 2 runs.

For India, Bumrah, Hardik, Jadeja, Siraj, and Kuldeep got two wickets each, while Shardul Thakur remained wicketless.

Pakistan innings

• WICKET: Jadeja gets his second wicket. Haris Rauf goes for 2. runs.

Pakistan - 191/10 in 42.5 overs.

• WICKET: Jadeja gets his first. Hasan Ali departs at 12.

Pakistan - 187/9 in 40.1 overs.

• WICKET: Hardik Pandya removes Mohammad Nawaz. He goes for 4.

Pakistan - 187/8 in 40 overs.

• WICKET: Bumrah bowls Shadab Khan. He is out for 2 runs.

Pakistan 171/7 in 35.2 overs.

• WICKET: Kuldeep gets two in an over. Iftikhar goes for 4.

Pakistan - 166/5 in 33 overs.

• WICKET: Kuldeep gets his first wicket. Saud Shakil departs for 6 runs.

Pakistan 162/4 in 32.2 overs.

Pakistan - 156/3 in 30 overs

Mohammad Rizwan - 47*

Saud Shakil - 1*

• WICKET: Mohammad Siraj bowls Babar Azam. He departs for 50 off 58.

Pakistan 155/3 in 29.4 overs.

• 150 up for Pakistan in 29 overs.

Babar Azam - 50*

Mohammad Rizwan - 43*

• Babar Azam brings up his 50 in 57 balls.

Pakistan - 125/2 in 25 overs

Babar Azam - 35*

Mohammad Rizwan - 33*

• 50-run partnership between Babar and Rizwan.

Pakistan - 123/2 in 24 overs.

Pakistan - 103/2 in 20 overs

Babar Azam - 30*

Mohammad Rizwan - 16*

• 100 up for Pakistan in 18.3 overs.

Pakistan - 79/2 in 15 overs

Babar Azam - 16*

Mohammad Rizwan - 6*

• WICKET: Hardik Pandya gets Imam. He departs for 36.

Pakistan - 73/2 in 12.3 overs.

• 50 up for Pakistan in 10.1 overs.

Pakistan - 49/1 in 10 overs

Imam-ul-Haq 23*

Babar Azam 5*

• WICKET: Mohammad Siraj gets big fish. Abdullah Shafique departs for 20.

Pakistan 41/1 in 8 overs.

Pakistan - 23/0 in 5 overs

Imam-ul-Haq 13*

Abdullah Shafique 10*

Playing XIs

He said top-order batter Shubman Gill has recovered and has been included in the playing XI in place of Ishan Kishan.

India: Rohit Sharma (capt), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Siraj.

Meanwhile, Pakistan have decided to field the same team that defeated the Netherlands and Sri Lanka.

Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (capt), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi, and Haris Rauf.

Preview

Pakistan, riding high on their record run chase against Sri Lanka, are on the hunt for their first World Cup win over India.

The two arch-rivals only play against each other in international tournaments due to political tension, and their matches are always highly anticipated by fans around the world.

In their eagerness, some fans have even booked beds in city hospital wards to secure accommodation for the match, after hotels ran out of rooms.

Both teams are unbeaten coming into the match, and Pakistan will be counting on their fiery bowling attack, led by Shaheen Shah Afridi, to stop India’s formidable batting lineup.

Security concerns have seen the match brought forward a day from its original date, and authorities are deploying 11,000 police officers to keep order.

Breaking the World Cup Jinx

India boast a 7-0 record over their neighbours in World Cups despite Pakistan having a healthy 73-56 overall advantage since their first one-day international clash back in 1978.

However, Pakistan skipper Babar Azam said during a press conference on Friday that “records are meant to be broken” and that his team was looking to break free of India’s World Cup stranglehold.

“I don’t focus on the past,” said Babar on Friday. “Let’s focus on the thing to come as we know records are meant to be broken.

“We will try to play well and it all depends on how you play on the day, just like we did in the first two matches,” added the skipper whose side have two wins from two at the World Cup after seeing off the Netherlands and Sri Lanka.

The India-Pakistan match is sold out with media reporting that scalpers are asking for eight times the original price for tickets.

India came into the World Cup as the top-ranked ODI team and lived up to the billing of tournament favourites with a six-wicket win over five-time winners Australia.

They are fresh from their eight-wicket thrashing of Afghanistan after skipper Rohit Sharma smashed a record seventh World Cup century on Wednesday.

But Rohit played down the hype around the tournament’s most anticipated fixture.

“For us, it’s crucial that we don’t worry about external factors and just look at things we can control,” Rohit said after his blistering 131 in New Delhi.

“We just need to show up and do well. Things like what the pitch is like, what combo we can play is what we can control. What happens outside, we won’t be worried about it.”