Asia Cup 2016, Match 4: India vs Pakistan - As it happened...

Over 15.3 || Score 85/5 (Yuvraj 14; Dhoni 7); Target 84

Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni hit the winning runs, a four through the covers. India remain unbeaten.

India had to fight hard for the win against a strong bowling side.

Over 15 || Score 80/5 (Yuvraj 14; Dhoni 3); Target 84

A twist in the tale! Mohammed Sami returned to remove both Virat Kohli and Hardik Pandya in the same over. Kohli, who was on course to make a fifty, was wrongly adjudged LBW. He edged, but umpire thought otherwise.

WICKET: Virat Kohli lbw b Mohammad Sami 49 (51b)

Then, newly arrived Pandya failed to control his shot of a crossed-seam delivery from Sami. Caught at first slip after some juggling act.

WICKET: Hardik Pandya c Mohammad Hafeez b Mohammad Sami 0 (2b)

MS Dhoni arrived in the centre.

Over 14 || Score 76/3 (Kohli 49; Yuvraj 12); Target 84

A class apart. Balance and poise. Virat Kohli has been exceptional. He need one run more for his 13th T20I fifty.

Seven runs from the over. India need 8 runs.

Over 13 || Score 69/3 (Kohli 43; Yuvraj 12); Target 84

Mohammad Irfan bowled out his quota of four overs. The over went for six runs, which included a single off a free-hit. Yuvi, who for the second time failed to put away the free-hit asked a new bat.

Over 12 || Score 63/3 (Kohli 39; Yuvraj 11); Target 84

Virat Kohli, after playing two dot balls, pulled the third delivery of Mohammad Sami's third over for a four. He then played a hook shot of a bouncer next ball for a single. Yuvraj Singh then played out the remaining two balls.

Over 11 || Score 58/3 (Kohli 34; Yuvraj 11); Target 84

Long over. Wahab Riaz started with a front foot no-ball. Yuvraj Singh failed to capitalise from the free-hit. The Punjab batsman finally took a single of the penultimate delivery, then Kohli retained the strike with another single.

India need 26 runs from 54 balls.

Over 10 || Score 53/3 (Kohli 32; Yuvraj 10); Target 84

Shahid Afridi brought back Mohammad Sami into the attack. The 10th over started with a couple with Yuvraj Singh playing towards the square leg. Then Virat Kohli consumed three deliveries before playing a cover drive for a single.

The over finished with a well directed bouncer to Yuvi.

Kohli and Yuvi have stitched a 45-run partnership in 7.2 overs. 

Over 9 || Score 50/3 (Kohli 29; Yuvraj 10); Target 84

Virat Kohli welcomed dangerous Wahab Riaz with a four, through the covers. A couple followed, on the leg side, before another four through the same cover area.

Little early to say, but Kohli has taken the match from Pakistan. Yuvraj, then, found his second four with a well timed four with a flick.

15 runs from the over.

Over 8 || Score 35/3 (Kohli 18; Yuvraj 6); Target 84

Yuvraj Singh, along with Virat Kohli, has somehow steadied India's innings. Le1ving the good balls.

In between, Pakistan fielders are fired up all the more with each run saved. And Shahid Afridi has managed to place fielders in just the right areas.

But there was a four, a lucky boundary, once again from the blade of Kohli through the slip cordon. He retained the strike with a leg-bye.

Over 6 || Score 29/3 (Kohli 14; Yuvraj 5); Target 84

Lucky Virat Kolhi just got another life, and a four. He hanged the ball for a while in the air, but it raced for a four through the square leg area. It was followed by a classic Kohli cover drive. No chance for the fielders. Eight runs from it.

And with that Mohammed Aamir also finished his spell. Figures read: 4-0-18-3.

Over 6 || Score 21/3 (Kohli 6; Yuvraj 5); Target 84

Brilliant cricket, all round. Mohammad Irfan continued his good spell, then Yuvraj Singh played a pull shot which was stop by Umar Akmal, denying India a sure four. Yuvi, then, continued batting with a watchful eye, leaving the good balls.

And power play is finished. One run from the over, thanks to a wide.

Over 5 || Score 20/3 (Kohli 6; Yuvraj 5); Target 84

Mohammed Aamir continued to produced the goods, terrorising Indian batsmen. But his exuberance back-fired as five wides resulted from a bouncer off the first ball of the over.

Then, a throw from Umar Akmal hit the umpire on the underside of his thighs. Painful.

Seven runs from the over.

Over 4 || Score 13/3 (Kohli 5; Yuvraj 4); Target 84

India needed to shook off the shackles and Yuvraj Singh just did that with a four, through the covers off Mohammad Irfan's first delivery.

But the lanky Pakistan bowler responded well for five dot balls.

India now need 71 runs more from 16 overs.

Over 3 || Score 9/3 (Kohli 5; Yuvraj 0); Target 84

Another brilliant over from unplayable Mohammed Aamir. He has brought a new ball of seam bowling, from nowhere.

WICKET: Suresh Raina c Wahab Riaz b Mohammad Amir 1 (4b)

Three runs and a wicket. Yuvraj Singh is the new man.

Over 2 || Score 6/2 (Kohli 5; Raina 0); Target 84

Veteran Mohammed Sami shared the new ball with Aamir. He conceded four runs even as the Virat Kohli brought in a semblance of calmness for India.

Over 1 || Score 2/2 (Kohli 1; Raina 0); Target 84

What a start from the Pakistanis. Mohammed Aamir removed both the openers, bot LBW.

WICKET: Rohit Sharma lbw b Mohammad Amir 0 (2b)

WICKET: Ajinkya Rahane lbw b Mohammad Amir 0 (1b)

Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina will need all their experiences today. With some pace and movement, this pitch is behaving devil.

India's two youngest members Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya were brilliant. Both conceded under 3 an over, taking wickets at will. But it was good start from Nehra, giving India the vital break in the first over itself. For a change, R Ashwin was the worse bowler today, without a scalp.

Over 17.3 || Score 83 All Out

Hardik Pandya cleaned up Pakistan's tail, removing Mohammad Sami and Mohammad Amir of successive deliveries in the 18th over.

WICKET: Mohammad Sami c Raina b Pandya 8 (16b)

WICKET: Mohammad Amir b Pandya 1 (8b)

For all the build up to the match, Pakistan's batting display thrown in an anti-climax. Then again, India will need to bat well against a good pace bowling attack from Pakistan.

Over 17 || Score 83/8 (Sami 8; Amir 1)

A good over for Pakistan with Mohammad Sami taking on Ravichandran Ashwin. 12 runs from it. Sami started with a four, then five wides followed. Three more singles, and Pakistan have added some valuable runs to their total.

Over 16 || Score 71/8 (Sami 2; Amir 0)

Ravindra Jadeja at it again. Clean bowled Sarfraz Ahmed to effectively end Pakistan's any hope of posting a respectable total.

WICKET: Sarfraz Ahmed b Ravindra Jadeja 25 (24b)

One run, one wicket from the over. His figures so far: 3-0-11-2. Mohammad Amir is the new man for Pakistan.

Over 15 || Score 70/7 (Ahmed 25; Sami 2)

Another couple of busy overs for India with R Jadeja and R Ashwin bowling in tandem. In the 13th over. Jadeja conceded five runs, indluding a four from the bat of Sarfraz Ahmed. Then Ashwin conceded seven runs from his second over, a four and three singles.

Over 13 || Score 58/7 (Ahmed 14; Sami 1)

MS Dhoni finally introduced his main weapon in Ravichandran Ashwin in the 13th over. And the spinner leaked only two runs in his first over. No contest.

Over 12 || Score 56/7 (Ahmed 13; Sami 0)

Easy call for the umpire. Another wicket for India. Ravindra Jadeja trapped Wahab Riaz plump in front.

WICKET: Wahab Riaz lbw b Ravindra Jadeja 4 (10m)

Five runs from it. Mohammad Sami is the new man. Nothing much for Pakistan now.

Over 11 || Score 51/6 (Ahmed 10; Riaz 4)

Pakistan crossed 50-run mark. Except pathetic running between the wickets, both Sarfraz Ahmed and Wahab Riaz played with straight bats. Four runs from Hardik Pandya's third over. His figure so far: 3-0-8-1.

Over 10 || Score 47/6 (Ahmed 8; Riaz 2)

Two quick overs for India as Hardik Pandya and Yuvraj Singh hurried their spells. Pandya conceded only one run in his second over, while Yuvi leaked four runs as India continued to apply relentless pressure on undisciplined Pakistan batting line-up.

Over 8 || Score 42/6 (Ahmed 5; Riaz 0)

What a first over from Yuvraj Singh. The slow left arm bowler struck twice to remove two of the most dangerous batsmen in Pakistan camp -- Umar Akmal and Shahid Afridi.

Yuvi trapped Akmal first ball LBW, which the umpire had no hesitancy to raise the finger.

WICKET: Umar Akmal lbw b Yuvraj Singh 3 (3m)

Then, of the final delivery of the over Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi was undone by a brilliant throw from Ravindra Jadeja from square leg. Run out.

WICKET: Shahid Afridi run out 2 (3m)

Seven runs and two wickets.

Over 7 || Score 35/4 (Akmal 3; Ahmed 0)

Pakistan in big trouble. Hardik Pandya removed the most experienced T20 player in Pakistani ranks.

WICKET: Shoaib Malik c MS Dhoni b Hardik Pandya 4 (12b)

Sarfraz Ahmed is the new man.

Over 6 || Score 32/3 (Malik 4; Akmal 0)

Jasprit Bumrah continued for his third over, and it started with four leg-byes. The young bowler then applied pressure with three dot balls.

Off the fifth delivery, Malik played towards the cover only to find Virat Kohli on the ball. From the non-striker's end, Khurram had already started his run and the Indian vice-captain hit the stumps from cover. Run out.

WICKET: Khurram Manzoor run out 10 (25m)

Umar Akmal is the new man.

Over 5 || Score 28/2 (Manzoor 10; Malik 4)

An eventful over. a missed field, a umpire Sis Saikat turned down a caught behind. Indians furious, especially a very animated Virat Kohli.

After two dot balls from Ahish Nehra, Khuram manzoor played on mid-on where Hardik Pandya failed to pick up the ball, resulting two runs.

Next ball, Manzoor played Dil-scoop with the ball clipping his glove. But umpire was not convinced. Two runs from it.

Over 4 || Score 26/2 (Manzoor 8; Malik 4)

Sharjeel Khan is some talent. He started the fourth over with a pull shot, which raced to the boundary. Jasprit Bumrah then sprayed a widish delivery, before...

...then produced a teasing delivery to get rid of Khan. Ajinkya Rahane took a good catch at first slip.

WICKET: Sharjeel Khan c Ajinkya Rahane b Japrit Bumrah 7 (5b)

Shoaib Malik is the new batsman. And he opened his account with a four. Eight runs and a wicket from the over.

Over 3 || Score 18/1 (Khan 3; Manzoor 8)

The third over started with a wide, which many would have argued for a leg-bye. Two runs, and an extra delivery. Then, Khurram Manzoor played a perfect pull shot with his body in perfect balance for his first four.

Then the right-handed batsman played another sumptuous shot, this time through the covers but Ravindra Jadeja covered some distance to cut it three. This field is fast.

Sharjeel Khan then let go the next delivery, before playing a hook shot, which produced another three runs. A wide followed.

13 runs of the over. Expensive.

Over 2 || Score 5/1 (Khan 0; Manzoor 1)

Jasprit Bumrah shared the new ball with Nehra. And the youngster right away managed to test Khurram Manzoor, with his variations. There were shouts and half-hearted appeals for LBW with the Pakistan batsman failing to read the deliveries.

And the result. A maiden over from Bumrah. Brilliant stuff.

Over 1 || Score 5/1 (Khan 0; Manzoor 1)

India's old war horse Ashish Nehra started the proceedings, with Mohammed Hafeez gently playing the first ball on the front foot. No run. Then, Hafeez played a delightful drive for the first runs, first four of the match. Good contact.

Nehra then responded with a perfect delivery to keep quite the batsman, bringing the ball back. Then WICKET for India.

Nehra managed to extract some bounce and it beat the batsman on the climb. Cool take behind the stumps by MS Dhoni.

WICKET: Mohammad Hafeez c MS Dhoni b Ashish Nehra 4 (4b)

Khurram Manzoor is the new man. Good start from India.

Minutes into the first ball.

Pakistan XI: Khurram Manzoor, Sharjeel Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Umar Akmal, Shahid Afridi (capt.), Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Sami, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Irfan.

Here's India's XI: Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni (capt., wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ashish Nehra, Jasprit Bumrah

Today's officials:

Umpires: Ruchira Palliyaguruge (SL), Sharfuddoula (BAN)
Third Umpire: Enamul Haque (BAN)
Match Referee: Jeff Crowe (NZ)

Shikhar Dhawan in injured and he has been replaced by Ajinkya Rahane.

A look on the pitch before the match

Here's how the pitch is looking for #IndvPak match. @ajinkyarahane88 replaces @SDhawan25 in the Playing XI #AsiaCup pic.twitter.com/wbmZS7zRCC

— BCCI (@BCCI) February 27, 2016

TOSS: MS Dhoni called tail and India won the toss. He asked Pakistan to bat first.

SQUADS

INDIA: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt, wk), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ashish Nehra, Jasprit Bumrah, Ajinkya Rahane, Parthiv Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harbhajan Singh.

PAKISTAN: Shahid Afridi (capt), Mohammed Hafeez, Sharjeel Khan, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Khurram Manzoor, Mohammed Nawaz, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Mohammed Aamir, Mohamed Irfan, Mohammed Sami, Wahab Riaz, Anar Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imaad Wasim, Mohammed Amir.

Team India leaving for the stadium, some time ago

#TeamIndia have left for the stadium for #IndvPak #AsiaCuphttps://t.co/JifqceWSqj

— BCCI (@BCCI) February 27, 2016

Less than one and half hour to go for the prestigious battle between @BCCI vs @TheRealPCB. #IndvsPak #AsiaCupT20 pic.twitter.com/gtVZHLMQmd

— Bangladesh Cricket (@BCBtigers) February 27, 2016

PREVIEW

World cricket's most intriguing rivalry will once again be renewed when India take on an unpredictable Pakistan with rehabilitated pacer Mohammed Amir being the focus of attention in a round-robin league encounter of the Asia Cup T20 tournament today

The match will also serve as a pre-cursor to the two teams' opening round battle in the ICC World Twenty20, next month.

The Indo-Pak cricket contests over the years have carried a legacy, not to forget the political undercurrents involved whenever the two bitter neighbours square off on the 22 yards.

READ FULL PREVIEW HERE