India secured their first victory in the Super4 stage of the 2023 Asia Cup against arch-rivals Pakistan, winning by an impressive margin of 228 runs at Colombo’s R Premadasa Stadium on September 11. This win not only propelled the Men in Blue to the top of the points table but also marked their largest-ever margin of victory over Pakistan.
The match, spanning two days, began on a strong note for Team India with openers Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill forming a formidable partnership of 121 runs before losing their wickets in quick succession. Rain forced the match to be carried over to a reserve day with India at 147/2 (24.1 overs). On the following day, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul delivered a remarkable performance, scoring 122* off 94 and 111* off 106 respectively, propelling India to an imposing total of 356. Kohli’s century also allowed him to surpass Sachin Tendulkar’s long-standing record.
Kohli reached the milestone of 13,000 ODI runs in just 267 innings, making him the fastest batsman to achieve this feat, while Tendulkar took 321 innings. Only Ricky Ponting (341), Kumar Sangakkara (363), and Sanath Jayasuriya (416) have scored 13,000 ODI runs. Kohli is now just two centuries away from equaling Tendulkar’s record of 49 ODI hundreds. In the meantime, Rahul, making a comeback after injury, impressed with his century.
In the second innings, Pakistan faced an uphill battle as Indian pacers struck early, with Jasprit Bumrah dismissing Imam Ul Haq in the fourth over. Spinner Kuldeep Yadav capitalized on Bumrah’s early success, taking five wickets in just eight overs. Ultimately, Pakistan was bowled out for a meager 128 runs, suffering a record-breaking 228-run loss to India.
Next up, India will face Sri Lanka on September 12 at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. Currently, both India and Pakistan have two points each, with India and Sri Lanka having played only one Super4 game, while Pakistan has played two.
