For Cricket Fans

From the Times of India:

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NEW DELHI: India won by six wickets against Pakistan in the Group B Asia Cup match in Karachi on Thursday. Chasing a target of 300 runs set by Pakistan, India scored 301 runs in 42.1 overs for the loss of four wickets.

Virender Sehwag's splendid innings of 119 runs and Suresh Raina's remarkable knock of 84 runs steered India to victory against the archrivals. For Pakistan, Iftikhar Anjum took two wickets.

This was India's first win against Pakistan in Asia Cup after 1988, and the quickest win for India while chasing 300 runs.

Scorecard

Earlier, electing to bat first, Pakistan set India 300 to chase in the Asia Cup match at the National Stadium.

Pakistan scored 299 for four with skipper Shoaib Malik (125 retired hurt) leading from the front. Malik, who opened the innings, recorded his first hundred as skipper and shared valuable stands of 90 with fellow opener, Salman Butt (35) and 133 with Younis Khan (59) to ensure Pakistan took full advantage of batting first in extremely hot and humid conditions.

After a series of handsome drives, Malik reached his sixth hundred and third against India in the 36th over from 104 balls with 13 fours and one six. He survived two chances in the 39th over when he was dropped on 116 and 121 by Piyush Chawla and Gautam Gambhir from off-spinner Yousuf Pathan.

Butt was the first to go during a mixed day in the field for India when he pulled leg-spinner, Chawla straight to Suresh Raina at mid-wicket after batting for 64 balls and hitting four boundaries.

Younis, who scored his 34th One-day half-century was the second man out, also caught by Raina who took a smart running catch at mid-wicket off Pathan.

After Malik retired hurt, Mohammad Yousuf picked up the pace by hitting five fours from 20 balls while Misbah-ul-Haq contributed an unbeaten 31 from 26 balls.

Yousuf was run out in the 46th over while big hitting Afridi fell in the penultimate over. A crowd of around 25,000 turned out to watch India play a match in Pakistan for the first time since February, 2006.

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Yah, I have no idea what any of that means either.