IND vs PAK Highlights: The rain has spoiled the party as the match has been abandoned. Pakistan were set a target of 267 to chase down but now both teams will be sharing one point each. For India, Hardik Pandya and Ishan Kishan were the star performers as they both missed their well-deserved hundred. On the other hand, Pakistani pacers were simply outstanding with the ball especially Shaheen Afridi who scalped four wickets in the match including Kohli and Rohit.
Pakistan Playing XI: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam(c), Mohammad Rizwan(w), Agha Salman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf
India Playing XI: Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan(w), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
Also read: IND vs PAK, Pallekele weather LIVE updates: Will Rain effect Asia Cup 2023 match?
India won the toss and opted to Bat first in Kandy
Rohit Sharma had no hesitation in deciding to bat first under the overcast conditions with the weather around. Rohit and Shubman Gill watchfully negotiated the couple of overs each of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah before the drizzle halted the match for a few minutes.
Shaheen hit the right areas after the resumption and cleaned-up both veterans of Indian cricket, Rohit and Virat Kohli in his consecutive overs and put India under pressure. Shreyas Iyer was looking good with hitting a few glorious shots before the Haris Rauf bouncer had his name on it. Iyer’s wicket was followed with the dismissal of scratchy-looking Gill with Rauf showing there is no substitution for raw pace.
Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya batted brilliantly, first milking the spinners before getting themselves set for the pacers. Both hit respective fifties and were involved in a 138-run partnership for the 5th wicket, taking the score from 66/4 to 204 before India got into tangles getting collapsed.
Kishan was brilliant for his 82 runs off 81 balls, while Pandya hit 87 runs in 90 balls. Rauf (3/36) and Shaheen (4/35) at their absolute best, followed by Naseem Shah cleaning up the tail with a three-wicket haul.