Dubai: Opener Abhishek Sharma struck a brilliant half-ton and shared a century partnership with Shubman Gill as India defeated Pakistan by six wickets in their Asia Cup Super 4s match here on Sunday.
Chasing 172 for a win, Sharma smashed 74 off 39 balls, studded with six boundaries and five maximums, and shared a 105-run opening stand with Gill (47 off 28 balls), as India reached 174/4 in 18.5 overs.
Thanks to the two openers, India reached 100 in just 8.4 overs. But there was a mini slump when the two departed, and skipper Suryakumar Yadav was dismissed for a duck, but Tilak Varma (30 not out) and Hardik Pandya (7 not out) guided the team to safety.
India had beaten Pakistan by seven wickets in the group stage as well.
As it was the case in the league match between the two teams, there was no handshake between Suryakumar and his Pakistan counterpart Salman Agha at the toss.
Shivam Dube emerged as a crucial bowler as India performed better in the back-10 after a slow start.
Pakistan managed 171 for 5 after a strong front-10 in which they scored 91 for 1, with a 72-run partnership between Sahibzada Farhan (58 off 45 balls) and Saim Ayub (21 off 17 balls).
