India beat Pakistan by a whopping 228 runs in yesterday’s (September 11) Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 match at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. Batting first, India posted a mammoth 356/2 in 50 overs and then held Pakistan to 128 in 32 overs. Following the thumping win, the Men in Blue moved to the top of the Super 4 points table, with two points and an impressive net run rate of +4.560.
Team India resumed their innings on the reserve day at 147/2 in 24.1 overs, with Virat Kohli unbeaten on 8 and comeback man KL Rahul on 17. The duo built on the great start provided by openers Rohit Sharma (56 off 49) and Shubman Gill (58 off 52) on Sunday, who had added 121 in 16.4 overs for the first wicket.
Both Kohli and Rahul struck fantastic hundreds and featured in an unbroken third-wicket stand of 233 – the highest partnership for India against Pakistan in ODIs, beating the 231-run stand between Navjot Singh Sidhu and Sachin Tendulkar in Sharjah in 1996.
The Kohli-Rahul duo was completely dominant and there was nothing much that Pakistan’s bowlers and fielders could do. Kohli struck nine fours and three sixes in his unbeaten 122, which came off only 94 balls.
In the process, he also became the fastest batter to reach 13,000 ODI runs. The 34-year-old got to the landmark in 267 innings, breaking Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar’s record (321 innings).
For Rahul, it was a fairy-tale return to competitive cricket. Playing in his first match since injuring his thigh during the Indian Premier League (IPL) in May this year, the 31-year-old smacked 111 not out off 106 balls, a knock which featured 12 fours and two sixes.
Pakistan were hampered by the absence of pacer Haris Rauf, who did not bowl due to a niggle as a precautionary measure.