India captain Rohit Sharma said that facing such a defeat against arch-rival Pakistan is good learning for his team as they were unable to capitalize on their bowlers' performance.
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A superb fifty by Mohammed Rizwan and a cameo by Mohammad Nawaz powered Pakistan to a five-wicket win in a last-ball thriller Super Four clash against Pakistan at the ongoing Asia Cup 2022 on Sunday. It was an exciting day of cricketing action for the fans as they got their money's worth. Rizwan's brilliant 71 off 51 balls proved to be the difference between both sides.
"It's a high-pressure game we know that. You`ve got to be at it every time. A game like that can take a lot. We were calm even when there was a partnership between Rizwan and Nawaz. But that partnership obviously went a little long and they batted brilliantly. Games like this can bring the best out of them if they deliver. These are the games that can make them. They've done it in the past. There's a class on the other team as well. And we're not surprised by that. We understand the pitch gets slightly better in the second innings," said Rohit Sharma in a post-match presentation.
"It's good learning for us. I thought it was a good score. Any pitch, any conditions when you get 180 it's a good score. We got to learn a lot today - what sort of mindset we need to have when defending a score like that. Like I said you`ve got to give credit to Pakistan. They've played better than us," he added.
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Virat Kohli dropped anchor for India from No.3, compiling his 32nd T20I fifty to lead India to their second-highest T20I total against Pakistan in the Asia Cup fixture. Talking about Virat Kohli's form, Rohit said, "The form is brilliant (talking about Kohli). Needed someone to bat long when the others were getting out. He batted with that tempo as well. Virat getting that score was crucial from the team`s point of view. Wickets of Hardik and Rishabh was not needed at that time. But we want to play with an open mindset. While taking that approach you'll not always have success."
"Chasing a target of 182, Pakistan got off to a shaky start after skipper Babar Azam (14) was dismissed in the fourth over of the innings by Ravi Bishnoi. Fakhar Zaman too failed to deliver big innings as he was sent back to the pavilion after scoring 15 by Yuzvendra Chahal. Mohammad Rizwan and Mohammad Nawaz then stitched a vital partnership, gathering 84 runs for the third wicket.
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Both Rizwan and Nawaz (41) were dispatched in quick sequence by Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Hardik Pandya, respectively. With Pakistan needing 26 off the last two overs, senior pacer Bhuvneshwar conceded 19 runs in the penultimate over as India lost the match by five wickets.
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