'Not a rivalry anymore', Indian captain Suryakumar says after outplaying Pakistan

DUBAI: India T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav played down the hype around the cricket rivalry with Pakistan after beating their bitter rivals by six wickets in the Asia Cup in Dubai on Sunday.

India rode on a blazing 74 from opener Abhishek Sharma as they chased down a target of 172 in 18.5 overs in the Super Four clash, where they again refused to shake hands with their opponents.

It was India's second win in the Twenty20 tournament over Pakistan in a week after their group stage clash.

It was also their 12th in 15 T20 internationals.

Asked if this dominance showed that the rivalry was waning, Suryakumar replied: "You guys should stop asking questions about the rivalry between India and Pakistan.

"According to me, if two teams play 15-20 matches, and if it is even, then it is a rivalry. 13-0, 10-1, I don´t know what the stat is, but this is not a rivalry anymore."

Pakistan's last of three T20 wins over India came in the Asia Cup in Dubai in 2022.

India and Pakistan only play in multinational tournaments as their bilateral ties have been stalled since 2012 over political tension.

Pakistan rode on a brilliant 45-ball 58 from opener Sahibzada Farhan but managed 171-5 after romping to 93-1 in 9.3 overs.

Suryakumar said that India played better cricket as Abishek and Shubman Gill put on a rapid 105 for the opening stand in 9.5 overs.

"I think we were better than them (Pakistan), and also from a bowling point of view," said Suryakumar. "The catch drop percentage at this venue is so high, and that is part and parcel of the game."

Suryakumar praised Sharma's talent.

"He knows what is required of him, what bowlers are going to bowl, that's a plus point for him. He is learning with every game," said Suryakumar of the 25-year-old left-hander.

Pakistan captain Salman Agha said that his team had come up 15-20 runs short.

"We have yet to play a perfect game in this event," said Agha, whose team next faces Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.

"After being 91 in 10 overs, we lost way but still feel 171 was a challenging total."

Agha acknowledged that his bowlers could not control the Indian openers.

"We need to play a perfect game, do well in all three departments," said Agha. "We look forward to playing Sri Lanka in the next game."

Bangladesh beat Sri Lanka by four wickets in their Super Four match in Dubai on Saturday.

Fakhar Zaman's controversial dismissal

Agha also voiced his concerns over the controversial dismissal of opener Fakhar Zaman.

“I don’t know about the decision. As far as I am concerned, it looked like the ball bounced before being collected. Obviously, it’s the umpire’s job and they can make mistakes—I have no problem with that. But to me, it did look like it bounced," Agha said.

"I might be wrong, I don’t know. The way Fakhar was batting, if he had continued through the powerplay, we could probably have scored around 190,” he added.

The incident took place on the third delivery of the third over of Pakistan’s innings. Fakhar Zaman attempted to drive at an off-cutter from Hardik Pandya, edging the ball towards wicketkeeper Sanju Samson.

The delivery, however, lost pace off the pitch, forcing Samson to dive forward to take the catch.

Given the proximity of the ball to the ground at the point of collection, the on-field umpires referred the decision to the third umpire. Fakhar, appearing confident that the ball had touched the turf, waited for the verdict.

After several replays from multiple angles, third umpire Ruchira Palliyaguruge adjudged Fakhar out. The left-hander stood momentarily in disbelief before walking back to the pavilion.

On his return, he was seen discussing the decision with head coach Mike Hesson, seemingly surprised at the outcome.

The dismissal immediately ignited debate on social media, with fans and former players criticising the umpiring standards in the high-profile encounter. 

The top two teams from Super Four will play the final in Dubai on September 28.