Abhishek Sharma only required a single line. In the Asia Cup Super 4 match in Dubai, he commented on social media minutes after leading India to a six-wicket victory against Pakistan: "You talk, we win."
His childhood friend and Sunday co-conspirator, Shubman Gill, came next. Even more incisive was his statement on X: "Game speaks, not words."
On social media, Indian cricketers hardly post anything during tournaments. Silence is more to their liking. The scoreboard is left to speak for itself. However, the situation was different this time.
There has been more to this Asia Cup than just cricket. The Pahalgam terror attack's aftermath, India's ensuing counterattacks, and the general political unrest unavoidably permeated the field. Although regrettable, the tense mood on the pitch might not have been surprising.
Players during both of the India-Pakistan matches have been charged up, from the handshake controversy in the group stage to the verbal volleys and posturing in the Super 4 match.
One thing hasn't changed, though. India dominating Pakistan, who merely poses without doing anything. A victory by 7 wickets on September 14. A victory seven days later by six wickets.
WATCH VIDEO - Shocking and shameful: Pakistan TV panelist sparks outrage, recommends ‘firing bullets’ to halt India match
The strategy used by Suryakumar Yadav's India in the Asia Cup was mirrored in Gill and Abhishek's scathing remarks: let the bat speak first, then add a sting with the pointed jabs.
The Super 4 match was played in a highly charged atmosphere following Pakistan's futile posturing in the days following their widely reported handshake snub in last Sunday's group-stage match.
Many people questioned whether future India-Pakistan matches would be this obviously combative because of the match's abundance of verbal volleys and pointed gestures that split opinions.
Pakistan was dragged back to a par total even though they had a chance to get close to 200 on Sunday.
Wasim Akram's distress at Pakistan's subpar batting display was almost obvious.
"If you look at the Indian batting order, they know their roles. If you look at the Pakistan middle order, they were all over the place. Two dot balls in the 18th and 19th over is criminal. And dots by leaving the balls. It means they had no clue against Kuldeep and the rest of the Indian bowlers. They need to play first-class cricket," Akram told Sony Sports Network.
India was off to a fast start in their chase of 172, as Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill were merciless. The two Indian openers responded to verbal barrages from Rauf and Shaheen Shah Afridi, Pakistan's new-ball bowlers, by fighting fire with fire.
Adding insult to injury after the game, Suryakumar told reporters not to exaggerate the India-Pakistan rivalry, saying it was no longer the same: "If two teams are playing 15-20 matches and the scoreline is 7-7, or 8-7, then you can call it good cricket. If it's 13-0, 10-1 this is not a rivalry any more. We've played better cricket and bowled better also."
Pakistani supporters quickly responded by pointing to their history, which shows that they lead 88-78 overall.
However, the recent 15 years show that India has won 23 of the last 31 meetings. The current rivalry is overwhelmingly biased in terms of outcomes. India has dominated both on the scoreboard and in terms of optics as a result of Pakistan's contrivance, posturing, and chaos in their cricket environment.
The Super 4 clash highlighted the contrast perfectly: Pakistan brought the theatrics, India brought the cricket. Both sides were fired up, but only one delivered on the field.
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