T20 World Cup, IND vs PAK blog: Pakistan end long wait as Babar, Rizwan guide them to 10-wicket win

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T20 World Cup: Shaheen, Babar, Rizwan power Pakistan to historic win over India

Pakistan win by 10 wickets: The losing streak is over, and in some style for Pakistan. They did everything right pretty much through the night and only Virat Kohli (and Rishabh Pant briefly) offered the resistance. A truly memorable night for Babar Azam and Co, plenty of thinking to for India who now face a massive, massive match against New Zealand next Sunday.

PAKISTAN WIN BY 10 WICKETS: So it is lucky number 13 for Pakistan. And what a way to end the wait too. Some performance this by Babar Azam and Co, set up by a sensational first spell by Shaheen Afridi.

Six, four, four to start the 18th over. Drink this in, Pakistan fans.

17.1: YIKES! A full toss almost hip high from Shami and it is a massive six over fine leg. Rizwan moves to 70. 11 off 17.

One set of fans are put out of their misery.

Pakistan 135/0 after 17 overs: Bhuvi goes for the defensive lines outside off, results in a couple of wides and one not being given. 7 from it and India extend this match by another over. 17 off 18 needed.

24 from 24 needed for Pakistan. Miracle needed for India.

Pakistan 128/0 after 16 overs: Result seems a formality now. India would do well to extend this as much as possible. NRR can prove to be crucial in the endgame. 7 runs from the Shami over.

Well some good news for Indian football fans, however.

Heart goes out to any Indian cricket+Manchester United+Barcelona fans out there. (United and Barcelona have had nights to forget in their big matches).

HALF CENTURY: Rizwan gets to his fifty with another four. 52 off 41 balls! Pakistan need just 31 off the last five overs.

Pakistan 112/0 after 14 overs: A win seems imminent for Pakistan... question is will they make it a massive one without losing a wicket. Two more boundaries for Babar Azam in that over, as Jadeja finishes with 4-0-28-0.

Pakistan 101/0 after 13 overs: Varun started well but his World Cup debut did not quite go to plan after that. Huge over for Pakistan, a six each for Babar and Rizwan. Varun finishes with 4-0-33-0.

HALF CENTURY! Babar Azam gets to the fifty with a six, pulling Varun over square leg. Didn’t even seem to middle it but when you are blessed with his timing... what a knock so far. 51* off 40 balls.

Pakistan 85/0 after 12 overs: Clearly there is dew, so an extra spinner might not have made the difference but also despite the dew, Jadeja largely keeping things in check. The selections from India will be talked about, one thinks. (Also, Hardik has been off the field due to a shoulder issue it would seem, Ishan has been substituting)

Pakistan 80/0 after 11 overs: A lofted shot four four by Babar in Bumrah’s over, that also witnessed a near perfect yorker that somehow contrived to miss the stumps. Not India’s night, you could say.

Bumrah straight away after the drinks break.

Pakistan 71/0 after 10 overs: A run-out review in that over but Rizwan survives. Another four for Babar too as he cuts Varun.

Nicely setup first half of the chase for Pakistan. They are ahead at this stage by some distance. India need a few wickets and the dew has set in too. Good news for India is Bumrah still has three overs to bowl, can he work up a miracle for his side?

Meanwhile, for any of you badminton fans out there, how about this!? (Incidentally, Axelsen ended a 13-match losing streak against Momota in this match tonight. Will it be Pakistan’s turn to end a losing streak of their own too?)

India need a Venky Prasad-esque effort from someone. This match has started to slip away quite significantly.

PAK 62/0 after 9 overs: Just when you thought the brakes were being applied, a six from Babar! What a shot, what a player. Picks up the length so quickly, pulls it over midwicket. Jadeja pays for missing his length by a fine margin.

PAK 52/0 after 8 overs: Six runs in that over from Varun including a wide but India are drying up the boundaries. Will it result in a wicket?

PAK 46/0 after 7 overs: Started typing this update when Jadeja came on to bowl. Over is done by the time I figured out what to say about it. Three singles, over done in no time. Peak Ravi Jadeja.

Ravindra Jadeja is coming into the attack.

PAK 43/0 after 6 overs: Bhuvneshwar returns to the attack and concedes eight runs in his first over. That’s the end of the powerplay and Pakistan are well ahead in the contest at the moment. They need 109 off 84. India need quick wickets.

PAK 35/0 after 5 overs: Shami returns to the attack and bowls another expensive over. Poor bowling from the pacer. He bowls a full delivery on the pads to Babar and gets clipped over mid-wicket for four. He then bowls a slow, short ball to Rizwan and gets pulled for four. Pakistan need 117 off 90.

PAK 24/0 after 4 overs: Superb start from Varun Chakravarthy, just two runs come from his first over. Pakistan have scored six runs in the last two overs. India are starting to build pressure.

PAK 22/0 after 3 overs: Good start from Bumrah – four runs and four dots in his first over. He attacked the stumps and nailed the yorker to end the over. Pakistan need 130 off 102. India need wickets to remain in the game.

Yep, it’s Jasprit Bumrah bowling the third over.

PAK 18/0 after 2 overs: Shot! Babar Azam with a majestic punch through extra-cover for four. He stood tall and timed it to perfection. Another good over for Pakistan. India might want to turn to Bumrah soon.

Mohammed Shami to bowl the second over.

PAK 10/0 after 1 over: Strong start for Pakistan! Rizwan flicks one through mic-wicket for four before pulling the next ball for six. Bhuvneshwar does well to bowl four dots and do some damage control. This is a key pair for Pakistan, India need to make the most of the new ball. There was swing on offer in the first over.

9.30 pm: Right, we’re ready for the chase in Dubai! Pakistan need 152 to win. They have skipper Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan at the crease. Bhuvneshwar Kumar is opening the bowling for India. Here we go!

India 151/7 in 20 overs after Pakistan won the toss: Join us shortly for the run-chase.

India finish with 151/7 in 20 overs: Bhuvi and Shami do the smart thing by running hard and making sure the last few balls don’t go waste. A fighting total… it gives them a chance. But Pakistan have the edge.

Over 19.3: WICKET! Hardik Pandya (11) c Babar Azam b Haris Rauf, 146/7

Hit a couple of boundaries but it doesn’t feel like he is in much hitting rhythm at the moment.

India 144/6 after 19 overs: WOW! Just when you thought Shaheen and Pakistan were having a great day on the field, it goes a bit pear-shaped at the end. A no ball to Hardik, goes for four. And the free hit is actually a good short ball but when India try to steal a single, Shaheen with a wild throw goes for four overthrows. A 17-run over! 4-0-36-3 for Shaheen.

Over 18.4: WICKET! Virat Kohli (57) c Mohammad Rizwan b Shaheen Afridi, India 133/6

Afridi has now taken the wickets of Rohit, Rahul and Kohli! What a night for him... a short of length ball, Kohli goes for a big heave over midwicket but can only edge to Rizwan.

Shaheen comes on for his last over.... Hardik needs a few big hits. India need a few big hits.

Over 17.5: WICKET! Ravindra Jadeja (13) c (Sub) b Hasan Ali, India 125/5

Jadeja had to start going with Hardik still in the dressing room. He hits one four but then mistimes a slower ball. Not quite the CSK version of finishing from the allrounder today but he will have a big role to play with the ball.

HALF CENTURY! With a well-run two Virat Kohli makes it yet another half century against Pakistan in a World Cup match. Follows that up with a lovely four through the offside. India need him to push on in the remaining couple of overs.

India 114/4 after 17 overs: Four singles in the 17th over is a great, great return for Haris Rauf! Great use of change of pace, Kohli plays out a couple of dot balls. Not ideal for India. He retains strike though.

India 110/4 after 16 overs: Two fours for Kohli in that over! One, making the most of a ball on his hips. The second... just sheer elegance. Through extra cover. Picture perfect. Moves closer to a half century but more importantly picking up the tempo at the end, India need some big overs.

India 100/4 after 15 overs: Just four runs and Shadab Khan finishes with 4-0-22-1. What a spell from him, including the big wicket of Pant.

Shadab to bowl his last

India 96/4 after 14 overs: Kohli’s innings had just lost momentum (or maybe intentional tonight) and he needed that ball from Haris to perhaps get going again. Does a fist bump too as he glances one fine from Haris Rauf.

India 87/4 after 13 overs: huge over for Pakistan. Pant was threatening to swing this India’s way decisively. And Jadeja walks in to keep the left-right going.

Over 12.2: WICKET! Rishabh Pant (39) c & b Shadab Khan, India 84/4

A slog sweep attempted, but only height no distance on that one from Pant. Shadab takes a really good catch off his own bowling, not easy in a stadium like Dubai. End of a fine little innings from Pant.

India 81/3 after 12 overs: Superb from Rishabh Pant. Shane Watson on commentary wonders if he actually practices these one-hand sixes! Just too good, and two of those good ones in that Hasan Ali over.

India 66/3 after 11 overs: Haris Rauf could bowl four straight from here, as he comes on in the second half.

India 60/3 after 10 overs: A lovely cut shot for four in that Hafeez over as we head for drinks.

Ashish Magotra: 10 overs gone, India have lost three wickets and they have just 60 runs on the board. Pant starting to play his shots. Pakistan will feel they are in control at this point.

India 52/3 after 9 overs: Pant takes on Shadab, should have had two boundaries. But great fielding keeps it to one. Off the last ball, a lovely scooped sweep.

India 43/3 after 8 overs: Pakistan keeping things tight here. Tidy over from Hafeez. India can’t really afford to counterattack too given the lack of depth but Pant seems to be keen to play his shots.

REVIEW LOST: Rizwan was pumped, he was 100% certain it was out. Rishabh played a reverse sweep, and the Pak WK thought it had been edged. But what a brilliant call by Erasmus. In the first replay honestly looked like there was a deflection. Nothing on Ultra Edge!

India 39/3 after 7 overs: Classic 7th over as Shadab comes into the attack and concedes just three.

India 36/3 after 6 overs: India lose three wickets in powerplay. Very Rajasthan Royals-sque performance so far, in a team which was expected to be along the lines of Mumbai Indians! Kidding aside, a huge test for Rishabh Pant now and Hardik Pandya later. India don’t bat all that deep. They can’t afford another wicket at the moment. Kohli finishes the powerplay with another gorgeous looking boundary.

Over 5.4: WICKET! Suryakumar Yadav (11) c Mohammad Rizwan b Hasan Ali, India 31/3

A promising partnership is cut short for India. Sharp catch by Rizwan, Hasan Ali strikes in his first over. Length ball, seemed to move away... outside edge caught with a good dive.

India 30/2 after 5 overs: We’d do well to see a better shot tonight! WOW. Sensational from Virat. A couple of dot balls, and what does he do against a bowler breathing fire? Walks down and smacks it over long on for six. What a battle this is.

India 21/2 after 4 overs: SKY not messing about. A well placed sweep shot off Imad and it is another boundary for him, a four this time. Important for India to keep the run-flow going. As good as Shaheen has been, this does look like a good batting pitch.

India 14/2 after 3 overs: A lovely shot by SKY! The audacity to play that under such pressure. Picked up over square leg fence in style.

Over 2.1: WICKET! KL Rahul (3) b Shaheen Afridi, India 6/2

WOW. Just wow. Shaheen Afridi! This is some serious heat from one of the world’s best. Length ball this time, goes through Rahul’s defence who seems to be beaten for pace. Bails out of the groove. Pakistan are in the groove!

India 6/1 after 2 overs: Imad, Pakistan’s other powerplay specialist, starts with a tidy 4-run over.

India 2/1 after 1 over: Virat Kohli, unbeaten against Pakistan in T20I World Cups, is in early. If he keeps that record in tact, India will have done well.

Over 0.4: WICKET! Rohit Sharma (0) lbw Shaheen Afridi, India 1/1

WHAT. A. SPECIAL. BOWLER. Shaheen is one of the best in the world for a reason, especially with the early overs. Full, swinging into Rohit and the Hitman is out for a first-ball duck. A predictable dismissal, it must be said.

Shaheen Shah Afridi will get things going. Watch out for his battle with the right-heavy Indian batting order.

07.29 pm: That’s a nice time to kick things off eh? The Indian players take a knee. The Pakistan players have their hands on heart. We are all set in Dubai!

What are India and Pakistan’s key strength and weakness?

ICYMI, Kartthikeya Manchala had crunched some numbers.

The quest for World Cup title begins soon:

Team news

India: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (C), Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy

Pakistan: Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Afridi

7.10 pm: What a day for Varun Chakravarthy. Between IPL and his opportunities for India, it’s been a rollercoaster for him. Tonight he plays against Pakistan in the team’s World Cup opener.

Sri Lanka win by 5 wickets! A splendid partnership between Asalanka and Rajapaksa took Bangladesh out of the game. Highlights from SL vs BAN here.

India team news: Well, India do opt for bowling experience over batting depth. The four players not featuring are Ishan Kishan, Shardul Thakur, R Ashwin, and Rahul Chahar.

TOSS: Babar Azam wins the toss and Pakistan will be bowling first. The Pakistan captain expects dew. Haider Ali misses out from the 12. And Virat Kohli says he would have opted to bowl too but eager to put runs on board. Team news coming up...

All eyes on India’s team combinations today. Pakistan had announced their 12 yesterday.

06.55 pm: Virat Kohli in T20 World Cup matches against Pakistan is yet to be dismissed. Can he produce another memorable innings tonight as he begins his final quest as India’s T20 captain?

06.45 pm: Virat Kohli spotted rolling his arm over in the warmups... could be a bluff, could be him bowling a couple of overs as he did in the warmups too because Hardik isn’t quite ready yet as he said before this match.

What he brings at that No. 6 spot is something that you just can’t create overnight, and hence I was always in favour of backing him in Australia as a backer purely, and we saw what he did in the T20 series and how he can take the game away from the opposition when he’s in full flow.

These things from a discussion point of view seem very interesting that if he doesn’t bowl will he be left out, but we understand the value he brings to the team as the No. 6 batter, and in world cricket if you look around, there are specialists who do that job, and it’s very important to have that guy, especially in T20 cricket, who can play and impact innings of that stage. Even when the chips are down, he’s someone who can play a long innings playing in that way.

For us that is way more valuable than forcing him to do something that he’s not ready for at the moment, but he’s motivated and he’s very keen to start giving us a couple of overs, and when that happens, obviously the balance becomes even better, but we are pretty confident how we are heading into the start of this tournament.

— Kohli about Hardik

06.40 pm: As we build up to the main event, how about this table India fans? Virat Kohli simply loves batting against Pakistan at the World Cups. In three T20 World Cup matches against Pakistan, he is unbeaten.

A thrilling finish unfolding in Sharjah, in what is a massive match in Group 1 for both sides. Sri Lanka need 50 runs off 35 balls. Updates from SL vs BAN here.

06.37 pm:

India, the first ICC Men’s T20 World Cup champions: 2007

Pakistan, the 2nd ICC Men’s T20 World Cup champions: 2009

Tonight, they begin their quest for title No. 2.

Who’ll come out on top?

06.30 pm: Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the much-awaited India vs Pakistan clash at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. Dubai is the venue for this blockbuster meeting as both teams get their campaigns underway.

This is the first meeting between the two sides in the shortest format since they met in the last T20 World Cup in 2016 at Eden Gardens. Of course this tournament was meant to be held in India too, one wonders if Eden would have been the venue again if that was the case. Dubai is a great setting too, as the ring of fire will witness one of the most talked about rivalries in the game of cricket. And as one-sided as it has been over the years in World Cups, tonight has the potential to be a cracking contest.

Some pre-match reading:

Suresh Raina column: Expect Virat Kohli, Babar Azam to lead from the front in India-Pakistan match

Full text: Virat Kohli on Hardik Pandya’s role at T20 WC, handling pressure of India-Pakistan & more

From 2007 World T20 final to Miandad’s winning six: Best India-Pakistan games in white-ball cricket

Blog with ICC Media and ESPNCricinfo Statsguru inputs. Match starts: 7:30 PM IST and will be broadcast on Star Sports & Disney+Hotstar.