Tilak Varma’s unbeaten 69 helped India come back from 20-3 and win an unforgettable Asia Cup final against Pakistan, marking their first ever matchup since this tournament began.
But the drama wasn’t over yet as Suryakumar Yadav, one of the standout Pakistan National Cricket Team vs India National Cricket Team players, refused to accept the trophy from Mohsin Naqvi, the president of ACC who also serves as Pakistan Cricket Board chairman and interior minister.
| # | Date | Format / Tournament | Venue | India Score | Pakistan Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 Sep 2025 | Asia Cup Final (T20I) | Dubai | 150/5 (19.4) | 146 (19.1) | India won by 5 wickets (Wikipedia) |
| 2 | 21 Sep 2025 | Asia Cup Super 4 (T20I) | Dubai | 174/4 (18.5) | 171/5 (20.0) | India won by 6 wickets (The Indian Express) |
| 3 | 17 Sep 2025 | Asia Cup Group (T20I) | Dubai | 131/3 (15.5) | 127/9 (20.0) | India won by 7 wickets (The Indian Express) |
| 4 | 23 Feb 2025 | Champions Trophy (ODI) | Dubai | chased 241 | 241 | India won by 6 wickets (The Guardian) |
| 5 | 14 Oct 2023 | ODI | Ahmedabad | 192/3 | 191 | India won by 7 wickets (ESPN Cricinfo) |
Jasprit Bumrah
Jasbirsingh Bumrah is one of the premier all-format fast bowlers in global cricket. Hailing from Ahmedabad in India and making his Test debut only 26 years old, Bumrah has already made his mark at one of the highest levels. One of his fastest bowlers on earth.
After impressing in domestic cricket, Bumrah was given the chance to make his IPL debut for Mumbai Indians during 2013.
Soon thereafter he established himself as an integral member of their squad and contributed towards them winning their inaugural championship that year. Furthermore, his performance caught the attention of selectors and earned him selection into India’s T20 squad.
Bumrah made his T20I debut in January 2016, immediately impressing with his versatility as a bowler. At the 2021 ODI World Cup he led all wicket-taker and won tournament’s MVP award. Additionally he helped India claim their inaugural Test series victory in Australia during 2018-19 (though unfortunately missing final match due to injury).
Bumrah earned recognition from the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Twenty20I Team of the Year and soon thereafter emerged as India’s mainstay across all three forms. He captained both Tests and T20Is multiple times – leading his side to victory against Sri Lanka in 2021.
Pakistan boasts an extensive and rich cricketing heritage, being home to one of the two oldest Test teams worldwide and competing in major tournaments since 1877. However, their history is marred by several highs and lows including an on-field cheating scandal against England in 2012.
Following this incident, several players were found guilty and sentenced to prison; since then however, the nation has seen dramatic improvement. Misbah ul Haq currently leads his national team into battle and has led them to multiple victories with an aggressive style of play that displays their talent and commitment as players.
Varun Chakravarthy
Varun Chakravarthy’s performance in the Champions Trophy final against Pakistan was truly extraordinary. He took three wickets to help India reach their target of 201 runs with just two balls remaining; this marked the largest margin of victory ever seen at an ICC tournament final. Pakistani batsmen like Shaheen Shah Afridi could not match up to Indian bowling forces and were forced below their required score by this Indian performance.
After India won, many players took to social media platforms such as Instagram to celebrate India’s win. Spinner Varun Chakravarthy went viral with his celebratory post featuring an image of himself holding up a teacup and writing, “World and India united!” as his caption.
Chakravarthy had an initially difficult first season after joining the national side in 2021, but since Gautam Gambhir took charge as coach he has made significant strides forward. Chakravarthy credits Gambhir’s guidance with improving his performances – believing his’spartan mentality’ helps enhance his skills development.
Even amid all the drama, Indian players still managed to have fun during their match in Dubai. Some even made jokes about the trophy controversy – Varun Chakravarthy stole the show by posting a picture with himself holding a tea cup and captioned it: “One world, One India.”
Hardik Pandya, Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav all made light of the incident with humorous posts using trophy emojis on edited pictures they posted to social media – hoping to show their fans they wouldn’t let it dampen their celebrations despite any potentially embarrassing incidents that might arise during an international game.
The team still has some way to go before reaching the level of world’s top teams, but is making progress in that direction. Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi both boast impressive batting averages in ODIs and T20s respectively, and their bowling has also shown considerable progress. Still, closer cooperation will help the team avoid losing focus.
Kuldeep Yadav
India’s spinners soon turned the tables in an exciting Asia Cup final against Pakistan, taking four wickets off Kuldeep Yadav who helped bowl them out for just 146 runs in their first innings – an astounding performance considering this was his debut tournament appearance! Kuldeep Yadav’s performance stood out, becoming one of the finest bowlers to ever grace this competition and his feat made even more remarkable given that it came on debut!
India’s batsmen also rose to the challenge and displayed some exciting cricket. Axar Patel and Sanju Samson both hit some fine fours while Virat Kohli scored an unbeaten six to ensure India won by five wickets to claim their ninth Asia Cup championship.
The match is being held in an atmosphere ripe with political tension, creating an electric atmosphere between both teams who hope to prove they are the superior team in this rivalry. Both are capable of producing some incredible cricket; it remains to be seen how such factors will impede their performances or not.
Pakistan are still searching for the right balance between fast bowlers and spinners. Saim Ayub is an outstanding prospect but has struggled with consistency, scoring numerous ducks in his career despite having some promising abilities as an batsman. Without improvement he may risk being dropped.
Abrar Ahmed made scoring runs difficult for India’s batsmen, yet they managed to hit some big shots off his bowling. Shivam Dube edged a short ball from Abrar; third man collected it late but managed to throw back to wicketkeeper who took out bails for removal by wicketkeeper, before bowling a flighted delivery which Tilak Varma hit for six off. Six runs came off this over while India required only 10 in their final over.
Hardik Pandya
Hardik Pandya has quickly emerged as India’s go-to all-rounder despite lacking Test match experience. Pandya can bat and bowl effectively in any situation, making him an invaluable asset to any team. Pandya played an instrumental role in their ODI series against New Zealand and England as well as in their 2021 World Cup semi-final defeat to Australia; both through his batting contributions which enabled some key wins while his bowling added balance to India’s lineup.
Baroda all-rounder Sagar Srivastava first rose to prominence during the 2015 Indian Premier League when his impressive performances earned him selection into India’s national squad and led to him making his international debut against New Zealand.
His ability to hit big sixes has made him a favourite of the T20 crowd, but what really caught the eye of national selectors was his bowling ability – right-arm medium-fast bowler who keeps asking rates low while troubling batsmen with his persistent length.
As his batting and bowling prowess was recognized by India, the youngster was chosen for inclusion in its 2016 Asia Cup squad. As an auxiliary bowler supporting Mohammad Amir and Shakib Al Hasan during tournament, his performance in final was notable, contributing to India’s close victory. His final batting score of 76 ensured India emerged victorious.
Pandya was recognized for his stellar World Cup performances by being selected in India’s One-Day International side for home series against New Zealand, performing admirably as an auxiliary bowler and top-order batsman; unfortunately however, injuries limited his workload; additionally this back injury prevented him from reaching the Asian Cup final against Australia.
Tattooed all-rounder with peroxide highlights embodies the youthful swagger of modern cricketers. Unafraid to express himself freely on the pitch and have an uncompromising approach on it; his deep voice matches up with his unrestrained energy on it; from Gujarat, this bowler boasts quick bowling action as well as powerful ball striking, making him one of the most formidable white ball cricket players today.