Hardik Pandya broke through (Babar caught for 31). Then Shan Masood arrived and went full beast mode—sweeping spinners, hammering pacers. Rizwan fell for 43, but Masood (52* off 42) and Iftikhar Ahmed (51 off 34) launched a death-over assault.
At 10 overs, Pakistan were 85/0. Rizwan brought up his fifty. The Indian fielders looked at each other. The crowd sensed history—but the wrong kind.
The final over, bowled by Mohammad Nawaz, had everything. With 16 needed, Hardik Pandya was caught out on the first ball. Dinesh Karthik came in, scored a single, and was run out. Ravichandran Ashwin joined Kohli. The required rate was climbing, but then the unthinkable happened. A low full toss from Nawaz was hit for six by Kohli, but the umpire signaled it as a for being above waist height, giving India a free hit. On the free hit, Kohli was bowled, but because it was a free hit, the batsmen could run, and they managed to scramble three runs. The game continued to swing wildly. With 1 needed off the last ball, Ashwin kept his nerve and chipped the ball over mid-off, sparking wild celebrations as India won by 4 wickets.
The Indian chase began in familiar, disastrous fashion. The atmosphere grew tense as the fiery Shaheen Shah Afridi and the young Naseem Shah exploited the swing. KL Rahul fell early. Then, the crowd went silent as the talisman, Rohit Sharma, and the dangerous Suryakumar Yadav departed in quick succession. India was reeling at 31/4.
Kohli shifts gears. Axar Patel (20 off 18) supports. India reaches 120/5 after 18 overs. Everyone expects 140 max .
Kohli bowled, but the ball deflects for 3 byes. Ball 5: Dinesh Karthik stumped.
India won by 4 wickets. Player of the Match: Virat Kohli Legacy of the Match
Run out due to a mid-pitch misunderstanding, leaving India stranded at 31/4 in 6.1 overs . Part 3: The Rebuild – Kohli and Pandya's Partnership