Asia Cup 2025: India vs Pakistan, Match 6 – Who Said What?

India defeated Pakistan by seven wickets in Match No. 6 of the Asia Cup 2025 on Sunday, September 14, at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. The Men in Blue have won their second group-stage game after defeating UAE by nine wickets at the same venue a few days earlier. They have also advanced to the Super Four stages, becoming the first team this year to do so.

Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah struck in consecutive overs in the powerplay to dismiss Saim Ayub (0 for 1) and Mohammad Haris (3 for 5). They finished with 42/2 at the end of the powerplay. Axar Patel surrendered only one run in his first over and dismissed Fakhar Zaman (17 off 15). By the conclusion of 10 overs, skipper Salman Ali Agha was forced to go back after becoming Axar’s second victim.

Kuldeep Yadav put Pakistan in a lot of trouble by striking twice in his second over. Sahibzada Farhan’s 44-ball struggle came to an end with the first ball of the 17th over. He had only managed to score 40. Shaheen Shah Afridi’s easy 33-run innings restored some dignity to the scoreboard. The team somehow managed to go to 127/9 at the end of the first innings.

31 of India’s 42 runs in the first four overs of the chase came from the starter Abhishek Sharma’s bat, who began the innings with Shubman Gill (10 off 7). Ayub caught both openers in different overs of the match. A 13-run sixth over propelled India to 61 at the end of the powerplay. Sufiyan Muqeem allowed 14 runs in his second over, bringing the equation down to 40 runs off 60 balls.

There were no boundaries scored in the following three overs. Ayub had also managed to get rid of Tilak Verma (31 outta 31). Shivam Dube (10* off 7) and skipper Suryakumar Yadav (47* off 37) led India to victory. Abrar Ahmed (0-16 in four overs) was Pakistan’s most economical bowler. Shaheen Shah Afridi allowed 23 runs in just two overs.

Talking Points

1. Ineffective utilization of powerplay by Pakistan

On grounds like the DICS where run-scoring is usually considered hard, Pakistani batters failed to make the most of the fielding restrictions. They scored only three fours and two sixes, when a lot more than that were needed against a quality opposition attack. Although, a lot of credit has to be given to the Indian bowlers here, who held on to brilliant line and lengths to not let the runs leak.

2. Indian spinners apply choke during middle phase

13 overs were bowled by the spin-bowling trio and Abhishek Sharma (one over for five runs). The Men in Green managed only 65 runs by the end of the thirteenth over. India’s crafted spinners helped maintain a tight grip on the game and never let Pakistan build any sort of momentum. Axar chipped in with a couple of wickets, whereas, Kuldeep Yadav took 3 for 18 in his four overs.

3. Abhishek starts well, SKY finishes

Much like the match against the UAE, Abhishek went hard at the bowlers and did not let them settle. Even though he did not carry on till the end, the start he had given his team was enough for the rest of the batting unit to treat the match as a 50-over contest.

Who Said What?

Kuldeep Yadav, Player of the Match 

Simple. Just execute the plans. Just see who is batting and react accordingly. I had my plans and executed them. First ball is always a wicket-taking ball, just have to go with that mindset and execute that wicket-taking ball. Batter maybe set but he’s facing me for the first time. Still feel I really need to work on my bowling. Sometimes, I feel I use too many variations.