Kohli's century leads India to a dominant victory over Pakistan

India secured a six-wicket victory over Pakistan in the match, with skipper Virat Kohli scoring an unbeaten century (100*) and Shreyas Iyer contributing with a solid 56. Pakistan batted first and were bowled out for 241, with Saud Shakeel top-scoring with 62. Kuldeep Yadav took 3 wickets for 40 runs and Hardik Pandya chipped in with 2 wickets for 31 runs. India chased down the target with ease, finishing on 244 for 4 to win the match.

In the biggest match of the year, with his mortality showing more than it ever used to, Virat Kohli showed he's still got it, that maybe, just maybe, the little he's lost wasn't going to define him. He ticked off 14,000 runs in ODI cricket, brought up his 51st ODI century, set up India for a semi-final spot and essentially crossed out Pakistan from the 2025 Champions Trophy. The holders and the hosts need other results to go their way to stay alive in the tournament now.

India went into the game as favourites. They proved worthy of that seeding by limiting Pakistan to 241, Hardik Pandya putting in the kind of performance that should make him illegal. An allrounder capable of dismissing the opposition's best batter, and then coming back to take down their top-scorer, isn't just a name on the sheet. He is the secret sauce.

And Kuldeep Yadav was the spice. His left-arm wristspin is so rare and he made it rarer by finding a way to be quick through the air without compromising on turn or accuracy. So that means unless batters pick him out of the hand, they are always going to be guessing. Three Pakistan batters guessed wrong. All three were death-overs wickets. Pakistan were setting up to explode at the death. Kuldeep just wouldn't let them. The injury hasn't affected his menace.

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Pakistan were able to produce moments. Shaheen Shah Afridi sending down a 143kph inswinging yorker to shatter Rohit Sharma's stumps. Abrar Ahmed conjuring a carrom ball from hell to get rid of a rampaging Shubman Gill. But when it came to capitalising on them, they just couldn't. The result was a world champion side that was renowned for pulling games out of the fire now seems to do the first part right - they definitely got into trouble in Dubai - but the other part, the important part is going so very wrong. Pakistan were 151 for 2 in the 34th over before they were bowled out for 241 with the most inexperienced member of the India side dictating terms, Harshit Rana and his slower balls were just impossible to hit.

A game in an ICC event and a rivalry with history bursting out of it eventually became so one-sided that its last few moments were dominated by an individual pursuit. Axar Patel turned down an easy two so Kohli could pursue his hundred. The crowd in Dubai loved that. There were 12 runs to get for India's victory and 12 runs to get for their hero's century and they chanted his name over and over. Pakistan were nowhere to be found. Ever since a collapse of 3 for 11 in 19 balls, this game turned pear-shaped for them.

Full report to follow