Virat Kohli's Dominance Over Pakistan Persists as India Triumphs; Champions Trophy Title Defense in Jeopardy

India once again dominated Pakistan in an ICC event with a comfortable victory. Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, and Kuldeep Yadav shone brightly as India secured a six-wicket win over their arch-rivals in a Group A clash at the ICC Men's Champions Trophy in Dubai. The match was a one-sided affair as Rohit Sharma and his team cruised to victory with 45 balls remaining.

Days ahead of the fixture between India and Pakistan, former India spinner Harbhajan Singh termed the rivalry "overhyped," citing the difference in quality of both teams. He opined that India is far better, and this has turned out to be true as Rohit Sharma's side put in a clinical performance to brush aside Pakistan's challenge, leaving the latter in a similar situation—depending on other results to make the last four of an ICC white-ball event.

With this loss, the defending champions are all but out of the Champions Trophy. If Bangladesh lose against New Zealand on Monday, then Pakistan will be officially out of the Champions Trophy.

Chasing 242, Virat Kohli hit his 51st ODI ton and 82nd international century to help India register a comfortable six-wicket win. He found support in Shreyas Iyer, who walked out to bat at No.4 as the right-handed batter played a knock of 56 runs. The duo never looked in trouble in the middle, and no Pakistan bowler could pose a challenge.

India got off to a quick start courtesy of Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. However, Shaheen Shah Afridi's inswinging yorker ended the Indian captain's 20-run stay. Shubman Gill then showed the world why he is rated as the 'Prince of Indian cricket' as he displayed exquisite straight drives. However, Abrar Ahmed's perfect leg-spinner ended his 46-run knock.

Then, Shreyas Iyer and Virat Kohli got together in the middle. The duo mixed caution with aggression and scored 114 runs for the third wicket. With just 28 runs needed, Shreyas lost his wicket in trying to go for an inside-out drive. He headed back to the pavilion after scoring 56.

Ultimately, Virat Kohli ensured India had no trouble getting over the line. Kohli and Axar Patel remained unbeaten on 100 and 3, respectively.

How did Pakistan go about their innings?

Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan won the toss and opted to bat first. Babar Azam walked out to the middle with some intent this time as he hit boundaries at regular intervals right at the start. However, Imam-ul-Haq was subdued at the other end and found the going tough.

However, the duo were able to rotate the strike. The introduction of Hardik Pandya into the attack changed the fortunes of Rohit Sharma and co as he ended Babar Azam's stint at the crease, and the right-hander walked back to the hut after scoring 23. Soon after, Imam-ul-Haq's brain fade resulted in a run-out, and the left-hander walked back for just 10.

Mohammad Rizwan and Saud Shakeel then brought the Pakistan innings back on track by scoring 101 runs for the third wicket. However, the duo was slow off the blocks in the middle phase, and less than 30 runs were scored in the 11-20 overs phase. India were not able to get wickets, but they managed to keep the run flow in check, and Pakistan never ran away with the game.

When Rizwan started to cut loose, Axar Patel ended his stay by bowling him through the gate. The Pakistan captain was dismissed for 46, but his below-par strike rate of 59.74 will definitely come into question now after his side's loss in the crucial encounter.

Saud Shakeel scored 62 runs but could not stay at the crease in the death overs. He will be kicking himself for not giving the much-needed impetus to the innings after being set. Pakistan kept losing wickets at regular intervals as Kuldeep Yadav made the most of the tricky conditions in Dubai.

In the end, Khushdil Shah's 38-run knock off 29 balls helped Pakistan surpass the 240-run mark. By the end of the innings, the feeling was palpable that Pakistan had fallen 15-20 runs short, and in the end, this gut feeling proved to be right.

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

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