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'Tough loss. Bitter pill': Dinesh Karthik serves brutal 'Champions Trophy final' reminder after Pakistan A crush India A
India A lost by 128 runs to Pakistan A in the final of the Men's Emerging Asia Cup in Colombo.
India A may have gone into the final of the Emerging Asia Cup against Pakistan A as favourites but the result was as far away from it as it could be. The Yash Dhull-led side were completely outclassed by their arch-rivals and ended up losing the match by 128 runs in Colombo.
Pakistan A batted first and a 121-run opening stand between Saim Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan, coupled with a masterful 108 off 71 balls by Tayyab Tahir helped them post a total of 352/8. Sai Sudarshan powered India to a strong start, propelling them to 64 runs within the first nine overs with a 51-ball 61. However, apart from Dhull's 39 off 41, there was little contribution from the other batters as India were all out for just 224 runs.
Veteran India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik congratulated Pakistan and commended India for their efforts on Twitter. He also drew a parallel to how the senior Indian team were thrashed by Pakistan in the 2017 Champions Trophy final.
Similarities to 2017 Champions Trophy Final
India A had thrashed Pakistan A by eight wickets earlier in the tournament with well over 10 overs in hand. Similarly, the senior Indian team led by Virat Kohli were the overwhelming favourites to win the 2017 final as well, having given Pakistan a hiding earlier in the tournament. Moreover, Pakistan were surprise finalists, having been the lowest ranked team in the tournament and being on the brink of elimination at one stage. India, on the other hand, were among the more dominant sides throughout the tournament.
However, on the day, Pakistan were in inspired form. Opener Fakhar Zaman's 114 off 106 balls helped them to a total of 338/4. India were then rocked by their top three of Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Kohli, who were almost impregnable throughout the tournament, being sent back by Mohammad Amir for just 33 runs. India eventually found themselves teetering at 72/6 with the likes of Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni also back in the hut. While Hardik Pandya led a bit of a late fightback with a 43-ball 76.
