Dubai. Feb 23: Virat Kohli’s sublime unbeaten century powered India to a commanding six-wicket victory over Pakistan in their Group A encounter at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday. With this win, India became the first team to secure a spot in the semi-finals of the 2025 Champions Trophy.

Chasing 242 for victory, Shreyas Iyer played a patient yet commanding knock of 56, forming a crucial partnership with Virat Kohli to guide India home in 42.3 overs. With two consecutive defeats, Pakistan is on the brink of elimination from the tournament. A win for New Zealand against Bangladesh on Monday would officially end Pakistan’s campaign.

In the first innings, Kuldeep Yadav delivered an excellent performance at the back end, claiming 3-40, while Hardik Pandya bowled brilliantly to take 2-31. An impressive all-round bowling display helped India bundle out Pakistan for 241 in 49.4 overs.

On a slow pitch, after electing to bat first, Pakistan's batters got starts but struggled to score quickly. The only notable partnership was a 104-run stand between Saud Shakeel (62) and Mohammad Rizwan (46), though it progressed at a sluggish pace. Pakistan, from a comfortable 151-2, collapsed to 241 all out, squandering a chance to post a bigger total.

Apart from Kuldeep and Hardik, Harshit Rana, Ravindra Jadeja, and Axar Patel took one wicket each, as India consistently picked wickets, including in the middle overs, for the first time in the tournament, despite conceding 17 extras.

Hardik provided India’s first breakthrough, pulling his length back and bowling outside the off-stump, forcing Babar Azam to nick behind to KL Rahul, who moved swiftly to his right to take a low catch.

Imam-ul-Haq, playing his first ODI since the 2023 World Cup, struggled to find rhythm and was run out for 10 off 26 balls. Axar Patel’s direct hit from mid-on found him well short of the crease, despite a desperate dive.

Meanwhile, Mohammed Shami returned to the attack looking much sharper, as India tightened the grip on Pakistan, conceding only one boundary between the 11th and 20th over, restricting them to just 27 runs in that period. With the pitch offering some grip, India successfully kept Rizwan and Shakeel under pressure.

However, at the halfway mark, Pakistan began to accelerate. Rizwan swept Jadeja for four through square leg, while Shakeel used the reverse-sweep and conventional sweep against Kuldeep to collect boundaries. Shakeel brought up his fourth ODI fifty in 69 balls, while both batters found the fence against Jadeja once more.

As Pakistan increased the scoring rate, India's attempt to break the partnership saw some missed opportunities. Shakeel survived a missed direct hit, while Rana dropped a tough running catch at mid-wicket, giving Rizwan a reprieve on 44. However, Axar Patel ensured Rizwan didn’t capitalise, dismissing him for 46 after clean-bowling him.

India could have removed Shakeel in the same over, but Kuldeep dropped a catch at wide long-on. The mistake didn’t cost much, as Hardik removed Shakeel shortly after, deceiving him with a slower short ball that he pulled straight to deep mid-wicket.

Pakistan's struggles deepened when Tayyab Tahir was bowled by Jadeja, leading to three wickets falling for just 11 runs between the 34th and 37th overs.

The slide continued as Kuldeep Yadav took charge, dismissing Salman Ali Agha at cover point, trapping Shaheen Shah Afridi lbw with a googly, and getting Naseem Shah caught at long-on. Khushdil Shah and Haris Rauf hit a six each off Shami, but their efforts were short-lived, as both fell quickly, leaving Pakistan with an underwhelming total of 241 on a pitch expected to slow down as the match progressed.

Brief Scores: Pakistan 241 all out in 49.4 overs (Saud Shakeel 62, Mohammad Rizwan 46; Kuldeep Yadav 3-40, Hardik Pandya 2-31) lost against India 244/4 in 42.3 overs (Virat Kohli 100 not out, Shreyas Iyer 56; Shaheen Afridi 2-74, Abrar Ahmed 1-28 ) by six wickets.

--IANS

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