Rohit Sharma-led Indian cricket team defeated Mohammad Rizwan's Pakistan match 5 of the ongoing edition of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 against Pakistan which is being played at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, on February 23 (Sunday). The Men in Blue has sealed their spot in the semi-finals of the mega tournament with this spectacular victory over their arch-rivals. They have also almost eliminated the Men in Green side. Virat Kohli was the hero of the match with his historic 51st century.
Pakistan all out for 241 runs
Pakistan lost two early wickets in Dubai after getting off to a good start. Imam ul Haq got run out after scoring 10, and before him, Babar was dismissed for 23. Imma played toward mid-on and then went for the run. The ball was swiftly picked up by Axar Patel, who threw it directly at the stumps. After the second wicket fell, Mohammad Rizwan joined Saud Shakeel. Pakistan might most likely be eliminated from the 2025 Champions Trophy if they lose here.
However, after their departure, Mohammad Rizwan and Saud Shakeel steadied the ship by joining a crucial partnership. Shakeel even smashed a fifty and Both of them joined a 104-run partnership and revived their innings.
Indian bowlers then managed to get quick wickets and also dismissed two more batters in short intervals. First Hardik got rid of Saud Shakeel and later Ravindra Jadeja bowled Tayyab Tahir. Later, Kuldeep Yadav dismissed Salman Agha and Shaheen Afridi on back-to-back deliveries further breaking Pakistan's back. Pakistan eventually got all out for 241 runs.
Shubman Gill ensures good start
India came out to chase 242 runs and once again Rohit Sharma tried to give the team a good start. However, he could not do it for a long time as Shaheen Afridi dismissed him on the score of 20 off 15 balls. Later Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli joined 69 runs to further progress the Indian innings.
After that Kohli and Shreyas Iyer joined a match-winning stand of 114-run stand that ensured the Indian team would once again be playing the knockout stage in the Champions Trophy 2025. Shreyas Iyer and Hardik Pandya got out but India's win was ensured at that point.
Virat Kohli's historic century
Virat Kohli smashed his historic 51st century and became the second batter after Sachin Tendulkar to hit 51 centuries in a single format. Legendary Tendulkar achieved this in Test cricket while Kohli did it in ODIs. Kohli completed the century by hitting a match-winning century. This is also his first century in the Champions Trophy century. He also created history after completing 14000 ODI runs during this match.
The former Indian captain became the third batter in history after legendary Sachin Tendulkar and Sri Lankan great Kumar Sangakkara to reach the 14000-run milestone in ODIs. He is also the fastest batter to reach this milestone as he did it in just 287 innings. Whereas Tendulkar took 350 and Sangakkara took 378. Virat Kohli has been the fastest to score 8k to 14k runs.
The Indian team will play New Zealand in their final game at the same venue on March 2.