LAHORE: A sterling batting display from the top order, combined with some good bowling, handed India an easy 124-run victory (DLS method) over Pakistan in their ICC Champions Trophy 2017 Group B opener at Edgbaston on Sunday. India scored 319 for 3 in their rain-truncated 48 overs and then dismissed Pakistan to 164 off 33.4 overs as the latter chased revised Duckworth-Lewis total of 289 off 41 overs. Dismayed by the performance of Sarfraz Ahmed and his boys, legendary Pakistan cricketer Imran Khan described the loss as painful.
Imran, now a politician, also went on to hit out at the Pakistan cricket establishment in a series of tweets.
As a sportsman I know winning & losing are part of the game but it's painful to watch Pak being thrashed by India without putting up a fight
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) June 4, 2017
Unless Pak cricket structure is totally revamped/reformed, despite an abundance of talent the gap between Pak & India will keep increasing
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) June 4, 2017
And we will keep facing disappointment by defeats such as the one today. https://t.co/noxfc7srWN
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) June 4, 2017
Pak cricket cannot be fixed if the Chairman of the PCB is not appointed on professional merit.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) June 4, 2017
Barring Azhar Ali (50) no other Pakistani batsman offered any real resistance as Indian captain Virat Kohli was in control of the match.
Kohli was all praise for his team’s batting performance and made a special mention of Hardik Pandya’s brutal hitting at the end of the innings.
“With the bat and the ball we were right up there, 9 out of 10. In the field we were 6 out of 10. If we tune that up to 8 or 9, we will be a very strong side in the tournament. I think this was a very complete performance starting the tournament,” Kohli said at the post-match presentation.
