Who said what - top 5 expert reactions to India's win in IND vs PAK Asia Cup 2025 Super 4 clash ft. Sunil Gavaskar

India beat Pakistan by six wickets in their Asia Cup 2025 Super 4 clash in Dubai on Sunday, September 21. The Men In Blue not only continued their dominance against Pakistan but also in the tournament, registering their fourth consecutive victory.

Bowling first, they restricted Pakistan to 171/5. Shivam Dube returned figures of 2/33 while Hardik Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav bagged a wicket each. In the chase, openers Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill set the game up beautifully with a scintillating 105-run stand at the top.

Abhishek smashed a 39-ball 74 at a strike-rate of 189.74 while Gill made 47 off 28 balls at a strike-rate of 167.86. Tilak Varma remained unbeaten on 30 off 19 in the end as they got over the line in 18.5 overs.

Here are some of the top reactions from experts after another convincing triumph over Pakistan.

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#5 Murali Kartik

Former spinner Murali Kartik called it a 'facile win'. Notably, Pakistan were 93/2 in 10.3 overs but were eventually restricted to 171. Kartik stated that had Gill not gotten out, the Men In Blue would have finished the game much earlier than they did.

"From 91 at the halfway stage, to only get 80 more and then the way the Indian openers started, if it had not been for the injury and then Shubman Gill getting out, I think this game looked like it would be over by the 14/15th over. It was good that both the openers put everything aside. Because they both dropped a couple of the catches between them. So to park it aside and come and give that sort of rip-roaring start was outstanding. In the end, it was a facile win," he said on Cricbuzz.

This was the highest opening partnership for the country in T20Is against Pakistan, going past the 77-run stand between Gautam Gambhir and Ajinkya Rahane in 2012.

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#4 Sunil Gavaskar

Legendary batter and former captain Sunil Gavaskar credited Suryakumar Yadav's team for the way they handled the pressure after the previous game. The two teams met in the group stage as well. While they beat Pakistan then too, there was controversy as the Men In Blue did not shake hands with the opposition after the game.

“I think, after all the halla-bullu that happened after the last game, the pressure was definitely on the Indians. Yes, the pressure was on to win this game in style, especially given everything that happened last Sunday. In this way, they showed they have the temperament to handle all that and deliver under pressure," Gavaskar said in an interview with India Today.

They had defeated Pakistan by seven wickets in the group stage at the same venue in a one-sided affair.

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#3 Harbhajan Singh

Former spinner Harbhajan Singh reflected that there is no contest between the two teams. Moreover, he believed that the Men In Blue are above every Asian team and have a contest only with the likes of Australia and England.

"Pakistan is a young team but right now they don’t have that strength. The way their pacers were hit in the first six overs shows that India’s head is held very high, and India’s contest is not with Pakistan or Afghanistan or any team in Asia because India’s level is above. And if India has a contest, it is with Australia, with England, who play this format well," he said on Sports Tak.

Suryakumar Yadav's men are the defending champions, having won the previous Asia Cup edition in 2023. They are also the most successful team in the competition, having won eight titles to date, the most by any team.

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#2 Ravichandran Ashwin

Spin legend Ravichandran Ashwin reckoned that the current team is on a different level and that Pakistan are a long way behind. He added that the only way to win the Asia Cup for Pakistan would be for the Men In Blue not to play the tournament at all.

"There is a lot of difference between emotion and skill. In older days, India-Pakistan matches used to trigger a lot of emotions, because of this players could make mistakes. Under emotions, some players can raise the game. This Indian team is on another league altogether. This Pakistan team is a long, long, long,long, long, long, way behind this Indian team. The best way for Pakistan to win this Asia Cup is if India don't play the Asia Cup," he said on his YouTube channel 'Ash ki Baat'.

They have now beaten Pakistan 13 times out of 22 meetings in the Asia Cup. Pakistan have won six times with three games ending in a no result.

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#1 Irfan Pathan

Former all-rounder Irfan Pathan lauded the bowlers for their performance despite Jasprit Bumrah having a rare bad day. Bumrah conceded 45 runs for no wicket in four overs. Even then, Pakistan could only get to 171.

"If a big bowler like Jasprit Bumrah has a bad day, whichever team he is in will not be able to make a comeback. Today it was a rare off day. Despite that India did not allow Pakistan to score 200 and this is the quality of the bowling unit, be it in spin or your sixth pacer. This is where Pakistan is behind, be it in batting or bowling. The gap is very huge and the Indian team is way ahead," he said on his YouTube channel.

The sixth bowler he spoke about was Shivam Dube. Dube claimed the key wickets of Sahibzada Farhan (58) and Saim Ayub (21). His scalps shifted the momentum and tilted the game.