Asia Cup: Top 5 Memorable Clashes Between India and Pakistan

India vs Pakistan; the duel itself has a magical appearance that pulls the fans of either side to give it a crack. The contest between them is more than a game where the emotions of the fans touch the sky.

But, unfortunately, the games between them haven’t been conducted for the last six years owing to political tensions. However, thanks to ICC and ACC, which makes both teams lock horns at least once or twice in 2-4 years of time.

Meanwhile, to take you back to those golden days, we figured out top five scintillating matches between India and Pakistan in Asia Cup history.

Here are the top 5 India vs Pakistan matches in Asia Cup:

5. When Virat Kohli knocked a magical 183 to chase down 330 at Mirpur in 2012:

It was a game which showed the glimpses of Virat Kohli becoming the best in the business. Initially, it was all about Pakistan, but the sublime effort from Virat Kohli saw other things in the massive game.

After batting first, the openers Mohammed Hafeez and Nasir Jamshed smashed fantastic hundreds. They both added 224 runs for the first wicket but lost their wickets in a difference of one run.

However, Younis Khan carrier the assault who smacked a quickfire fifty to boost Pakistan to a massive tally of 329 on the board. In reply to the chase, Hafeez sent Gautam Gambhir for a two-ball duck.

Then came the young Virat Kohli with a lot of fire in his eyes to guide the team. He alongside the great Sachin Tendulkar took the attack to the opposition. Virat Kohli nailed Pakistan’s bowling attack by cracking as many as 22 fours in his inning.

Though he missed a deserving double hundred by 17 runs, Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina finished the things off comfortably with a couple of overs left.

4. When Gautam Gambhir led India to a thrilling victory at Dambulla in 2010 in Asia Cup

The stylish southpaw Gautam Gambhir always had his moments in big events for India.

He was always a big match player, and when it comes to playing against Pakistan, Gambhir always tried to hang in there for India.

Initially, it was Pakistan who batted first on a slow wicket. The lefty Salman Butt started things exceptionally for Pakistan, but unfortunately, he couldn’t get the support from the other end. Shoaib Malik scored a brisk 39 before Kamran Akmal’s late burst to push Pakistan to 267 on the board.

In reply to the chase, Gautam Gambhir stood tall at the crease by tackling Pakistan’s quality spin. Though Sehwag and Virat Kohli walked back quickly, MS Dhoni joined Gambhir to keep the chase on track. Just when things were going India’s way, Malik cleaned up MS Dhoni to push India in sorts of trouble.

Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina got their starts but couldn’t quite carry on. However, Harbhajan Singh smoked a couple of crucial sixes to hand India a memorable victory. Indians completed the chase with only one ball to spare in the Asia Cup.

3. Shahid Afridi smashed a quickfire knock to clinch a thrilling one-wicket victory at Mirpur in 2014 Asia Cup

It was a match best remembered for Shahid Afridi’s massive hitting. He smashed Indian bowlers all over the park when it mattered the most to fly Pakistan flag high on Bangladesh soil facing India.

Virat Kohli-led side was asked to bat first on a Mirpur’s slow wicket to start the things. Though Dhawan and Virat had gone for low scores, Rohit Sharma scored a brisk fifty to keep things in balance.

Rahane faced 50 balls for his 23. However, Ambati Rayudu’s 58 under pressure boosted India to 245 on the board. In reply to the chase, Shehzad and Jamshed started the things well for Pakistan, but the run rate wasn’t quite picked up.

Hafeez scored a brilliant 75 but took 117 balls while batting in the middle order. All of a sudden, they found themselves in a soup by scoring 203/6. However, Afridi went on a rampage and scored a quickfire 38 off 18 balls to guide Pakistan to victory with only one wicket to spare.

2. Sehwag-Raina crushed Pakistan at Karachi in 2008 Asia Cup

Gone are those days when Pakistan also got the luxury of being the hosts. However, the political tensions saw the other side of the things for them.

Meanwhile, coming to 2008 Asia Cup, it was a memorable day for India when Sehwag, Raina smashed Pakistan in their backyard.

Shoaib Mallik, who was opening the batting, scored 125 off 199 balls and set the stage for a cracking game. Younis Khan too gave his helping by scoring a brisk 60 runs to help Pakistan continue the onslaught.

Some decent death bowling by Indians ensured Pakistan doesn’t go past 299 who once looked like smashing anything close to 350+. In reply, Virender Sehwag completely dominated the things for India.

Sehwag and Raina shared a partnership of 198 runs. By the time Raina fell in the 28th over, India had raced to 210 and was well on the course of victory.

Fireworks from the duo had left the Pakistani cricketers stunned, and India chased down the total in 42.1 overs.

1. Javed Miandad’s last ball six seals it for Pakistan in 1986 Asia Cup final:

The former Pakistan captain and India’s arch-nemesis, Javed Miandad is remembered for hitting that six at Sharjah which made him a legend as well.

However, the bitter memories of Miandad hitting Chetan Sharma for a six off the last ball of the match in Austral-Asia Cup final are still fresh in fans’ minds.

Requiring four runs in one ball, Sharma bowled a low full-toss to Miandad, that the latter bludgeoned away to the boundary. The Pakistani batsman scored 116 no in the match. Batting first, India had set Pakistan a target of 246 runs.

Apart from Javed Miandad, none of the Pakistani batsmen showed fight against Indian attack. Coming to Indian setup, it was Sunil Gavaskar who scored 92 alongside Vengsarkar scored 50.

Though Chetan Sharma was brilliant throughout the match, one ball completely changed the scenario. He achieved many records in his career but always will get remembered for the last ball to Javed.