Asia Cup 2022: India beat Pakistan by 5 wickets in last-over thriller

Hardik Pandya scored 33 off 17 balls (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)

India registered a five-wicket victory against Pakistan in their opening bout of Asia Cup 2022, as the Rohit Sharma-led side chased down a target of 148 runs in the final over.

All-rounder Hardik Pandya played a stellar role with the bat, as he took the team over the line and remained unbeaten with his knock of 33.

India's inning started with a setback, with opener KL Rahul being dismissed for a duck in the first over by debuting pacer Naseem Shah. Former skipper Virat Kohli, who is struggling with form came at one-down and was fortunate to be dropped off at slip on his first ball.

Kohli and captain Rohit Sharma (12) put on a partnership of 49 runs, before the latter was caught at long-off on a flighted delivery by spinner Mohammed Nawaz.

Kohli departed shortly, scoring 35 off 34 balls, as he was caught on the fence on Nawaz's delivery. All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, who was promoted up the order, struck a 29-ball 35 runs knock as he stitched two essential partnerships with Suryakumar Yadav (18) and Pandya.

Put to bat first, Pakistan was restricted to 147, with wicketkeeper-batter Mohammed Rizwan emerging as the top run getter, scoring 43 off 42 balls.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar (4/26) was at his skillful best and his four wicket haul included the prized scalp of Babar Azam (10). However, Hardik's envious figures of 3 for 25 in four overs, during the middle phase, triggered a Pakistani batting collapse.

Young seamer Arshdeep Singh also returned decent figures of 2 fo 33 in his first ever appearance in an Indo-Pak clash as all 10 wickets were snapped by speed merchants, a first for India in shortest version.

With this victory, India sits at top of the points table in Group A of Asia Cup. The team's next match is scheduled against Hong Kong on August 31.

(With PTI inputs)