A history of the best encounters between arch-rivals India and Pakistan in the Asia Cup

An intangible fervour has enveloped the cricketing world with the contest of the arch-rivals India and Pakistan scheduled to take place on September 23, 2018, in the Super 4s. With nail-biting finishes and edge-of-the-seat thrillers guaranteed in every battle that takes place between the two nations, expectations are rocket-high for the fifth game of the Asia Cup as well.

The two sides have faced each other 13 times in the tournament, with India inching ahead with 7 wins and Pakistan coming close with 5 victories under their belt. Here, we look back at the 5 best battles that have unearthed when the two subcontinental giants have faced off against each other in the Asia Cup.

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April 13, 1984: India won by 54 runs at Sharjah

In the first edition of the Asia Cup that was held at UAE, India and Pakistan clashed in the finals of the tournament. After winning the toss and opting to bat first, the Indians got off to an assured started, adding 54 runs for the first wicket, with openers Surinder Khanna and Ghulam Parkar ensuring that the new ball bowlers were kept at bay. However, despite Khanna’s 56 and Sandeep Patil’s 43, India managed just 188 runs in 46 overs - a modest target in all honesty.

In reply, Pakistan did lose Saadat Ali up early but Mohsin Khan ensured that the victory was well on track. However, once he was dismissed by Ravi Shastri, the order collapsed and the side were eventually all out for 134 in 39.4 overs. Shastri along with Roger Binny picked up 3 wickets apiece, and the poor running between the wickets from the Pakistani batters - there were four run-outs in the innings - meant that the Men in Green were never in the game. The first clash in the Asia Cup ended with India notching up a comprehensive win.

July 25, 2004: Pakistan won by 59 runs at Colombo

The game in 2004 was guided by one man - Shoaib Malik. He hung around and held one end up even as wickets were constantly tumbling at the other end. His knock of 143 off 127 deliveries consisted of 18 boundaries and one six and the importance of the innings can be gauged from the fact that apart from the right-hander, no other Pakistani batsmen crossed the 50-run mark. Pakistan ended with 300 runs on the board, which was also the first time that the side breached the 300-run mark against India in an Asia Cup game.

The match seemed ill-fated for the Indians after Virender Sehwag was out early but the two senior pros Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly stitched together a 62-run partnership to shift the momentum in India’s favour, albeit slightly. However, once Ganguly was dismissed India lost a couple of quick wickets but Tendulkar failed to get fazed, notching up a 53-run partnership with Irfan Pathan for the sixth wicket.

However, once he was dismissed for 78 runs off 103 balls in the 43rd over, the match seemed to close in on Pakistan and despite a stiff resistance from India, the opponents grabbed a 59-run victory. Malik, along with his brilliant hundred, picked up 2 wickets with the ball as well to end a perfect day for himself and his team.

June 19, 2010: India won by 3 wickets at Dambulla

Possibly one of the closest encounters between the two sides in the competition, the match was not a high-scoring encounter but it went down to the very last over with India crawling their way to a win. Batting first, Pakistan scripted a fighting 267, courtesy fifties from Salman Butt and Kamran Akmal. Malik and Shahid Afridi contributed with crucial 30s as well to help Pakistan cross the 250-run mark.

In reply, India were reduced to 82 for 2 within 18 overs and though the target was not as hefty, Saeed Ajmal had started weaving his magic. However, MS Dhoni combined with Gautam Gambhir to negate the spin threat and a 98-run partnership brought the momentum back into the Indian side. However, their quick dismissals started a collapse and India had lost 6 wickets by the 46th over. With 16 runs required off the last two overs, the tension around the camps had reached sky-high, but the match tilted in favour of the Indians as Suresh Raina first hit a six and then scrambled for three runs in the penultimate over to reduce the equation to 7 off 6.

However, with Raina getting dismissed in the second ball of the last over, the pressure seemed to mount around the stadium, which was even witnessed in the heated exchange between Shoaib Akhtar and Harbhajan Singh. With three needed off the last ball and with Bhajji on strike, only a boundary could save India. A towering six that was greeted with Bhajji pointing his willow towards Akhtar ended one of the most exciting clashes in the history of the Asia Cup.

March 18, 2012: India won by 6 wickets at Dhaka

This match finds a place in the list due to the mesmerizing knock played by Virat Kohli, which further announced his arrival. Coming close at the heels of his bashing of Lasith Malinga in Australia, Kohli’s 183 put him well on course for future superstardom. Twin centuries from Mohammad Hafeez and Nasir Jamshed pushed Pakistan’s total to a competitive 329 for 6 in their quota of 50 overs and it needed a superhuman effort from the Indians to chase down the target.

The Indian innings got off to the worst possible start, with Gambhir oiut for a duck in the very first over. However Tendulkar and Kohli combined to add 133 runs for the second wicket, before the former was dismissed for 52. A steady hand from Rohit Sharma ensured that Kohli got adequate support at the other end and once he crossed 100, the Delhiite started taking every bowler to the cleaners. His mammoth knock of 183 off 148 deliveries was studded with 22 fours and one six, and his insane knock was a major reason why India managed to convincingly overhaul the target with 13 deliveries remaining.

March 2, 2014: Pakistan won by 1 wicket at Dhaka

Despite three fifties from the Indian batters, India could manage only 245 runs on the board at Dhaka four years earlier. Rohit, Ambati Rayudu and Ravindra Jadeja all scored 50+ runs but the bowlers were the takeaway from the first innings, with Ajmal picking up 3/40 in 10 overs, and Hafeez and Mohammad Talla finishing with economy rates of 4.22 and 3.14, respectively.

In return, Pakistan got off to a steady start, with Sharjeel Khan and Ahmed Shehzad piling on 71 runs for the first wicket. However, it was a Hafeez show henceforth, as the player ensured he kept his nerve even as his mates were making a mess of the chase. By the time Hafeez was dismissed, Pakistan needed another 46 runs from 45 deliveries with 4 wickets in hand. However, a twin-wicket over from Praveen Kumar in the 49th over reduced Pakistan to 239 for 8 and the side needed 10 runs in the last over with two wickets intact.

First ball, a carrom ball by Ravichandran Ashwin that bowled Ajmal around his legs. The equation - 10 off 5 balls with 1 wicket in hand. The pressure was immense on Junaid Khan, the last player in, but he did well to rotate the strike and give his skipper Afridi the strike. What followed was mania as Afridi slammed two sixes off consecutive balls to seal the deal for his side. His 18-ball 34 helped Pakistan win yet another cliff-hanger.