ICC T20 World Cup: India beat Pakistan by 6 Wickets

India registered an emphatic 6-wicket victory over arch-rivals Pakistan at the Eden Gardens to record their first win in ICC T20 World Cup. They had lost to New Zealand in the first game.

Earlier, the match was reduced to 18 overs a side due to rains. India won the toss and elected to bowl. Toss played a crucial role in this match. The euphoria was visible from the very beginning with Big B Amitabh Bachchan singing the national anthem for India, while Shafqat Amanat Ali doing the same for Pakistan.

Sachin Tendulkar, Sunil Gavaskar and Virender Sehwag from India and Imran Khan, Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis from Pakistan were felicitated. Amitabh Bachchan was also felicitated. The crowd chanted ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ throughout the match.

Pakistan batsmen failed to counter the Indian spinners and managed to score 118/5 in 18 overs. Ahmed Shehzad (25), Umar Akmal (22) and Shoaib Malik (26) were the top scorers. Nehra, Bumrah, Jadeja, Raina and Pandya took one wicket each.

In reply, India lost three quick wickets, but Virat Kohli and Yuvraj Singh prevented further damage. India reached 119/4 in 15.4 overs. Kohli remained unbeaten on 55 off 37 balls. Yuvraj Singh made 24. Mohammad Sami took two wickets. Virat Kohli was declared ‘Man of the Match’.

After the winning runs were scored, Big B Amitabh Bachchan was seen waving the Tricolor and cheering the team.