India achieved yet another convincing victory over Pakistan in an ICC event, demonstrating their dominance without any significant effort. In a Group A match of the ICC Men's Champions Trophy held at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, and Kuldeep Yadav emerged as the key contributors, leading India to a six-wicket triumph over their long-standing rivals. The match proved to be rather one-sided, as Rohit Sharma's team comfortably reached the target with 45 balls remaining.

Prior to the match, former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh described the rivalry as "overhyped," pointing to the disparity in the quality of the two teams. He asserted that India is significantly superior, a statement that was validated as Rohit Sharma's squad executed a flawless performance, effectively neutralizing Pakistan's challenge. Consequently, Pakistan now finds itself in a precarious position, reliant on other outcomes to secure a place in the semifinals of an ICC white-ball tournament.

Following this defeat, the defending champions are virtually eliminated from the Champions Trophy. Should Bangladesh lose to New Zealand on Monday, Pakistan will be officially out of contention.

In pursuit of 242 runs, Virat Kohli notched his 51st ODI century and 82nd international century, facilitating India's comfortable six-wicket victory. He received valuable support from Shreyas Iyer, who contributed 56 runs after coming in at No. 4. The pair appeared unfazed throughout their innings, with no Pakistani bowler managing to pose a significant threat.

India commenced their innings with a brisk pace, thanks to Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. However, an inswinging yorker from Shaheen Shah Afridi ended Rohit Sharma's innings at 20 runs. Shubman Gill then showcased his talent, earning the title of the 'Prince of Indian cricket' with his elegant straight drives, until Abrar Ahmed's well-executed leg-spin dismissed him after a score of 46.

Subsequently, Shreyas Iyer and Virat Kohli formed a partnership, blending caution with aggression to amass 114 runs for the third wicket. With only 28 runs required for victory, Shreyas attempted an ambitious inside-out drive and was dismissed after scoring 56 runs.

How did Pakistan go about their innings?

Pakistan's captain, Mohammad Rizwan, won the toss and chose to bat first. Babar Azam approached the innings with determination, striking boundaries consistently from the outset. In contrast, Imam-ul-Haq struggled at the other end, finding it difficult to score.

Despite this, the pair managed to rotate the strike effectively. The entry of Hardik Pandya into the bowling attack shifted the momentum in favor of Rohit Sharma's team, as he dismissed Babar Azam, who departed after scoring 23 runs. Shortly thereafter, Imam-ul-Haq's lapse in judgment led to a run-out, resulting in his dismissal for a mere 10 runs.

Following this, Mohammad Rizwan and Saud Shakeel steadied the innings, forming a partnership of 101 runs for the third wicket. However, their scoring rate was sluggish during the middle overs, accumulating less than 30 runs between the 11th and 20th overs. While India failed to take wickets during this period, they effectively restricted the run rate, preventing Pakistan from gaining a significant advantage.

As Rizwan began to accelerate, Axar Patel dismissed him by bowling him out, with the Pakistan captain scoring 46 runs at a strike rate of 59.74, a statistic that may be scrutinized following his team's defeat in this critical match.

Saud Shakeel contributed 62 runs but was unable to remain at the crease during the final overs, which left him regretting the lack of momentum he could have provided after settling in. Pakistan continued to lose wickets at regular intervals, with Kuldeep Yadav capitalizing on the challenging conditions in Dubai.

Ultimately, Khushdil Shah's innings of 38 runs off 29 balls enabled Pakistan to exceed the 240-run mark. However, there was a prevailing sense that Pakistan had fallen short by 15 to 20 runs, a feeling that was later validated.

For India, Kuldeep Yadav was the standout bowler with three wickets, while Hardik Pandya claimed two. Harshit Rana and Ravindra Jadeja each took one wicket. Saud Shakeel emerged as the top scorer for Pakistan.

Read Also: Sunil Gavaskar Criticizes Virat Kohli After Controversial Block Against Pakistan

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