In Sunday, September 28’s high-stakes final between India and Pakistan at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Shubman Gill fell short of expectations.
After winning the toss and choosing to bowl first, India performed a fantastic job of limiting Pakistan to 146 in 19.1 overs. With 84 runs in 10 overs, openers Sahibzada Farhan and Fakhar Zaman gave the Men in Green an outstanding start. In the continental competition, the former scored his second fifty against India. Following his dismissal for 57 off 38 balls, Saim Ayub and Zaman added 29 runs.
But with Kuldeep Yadav at the forefront, India put the brakes on.
The Pakistani middle-order came crashing in after Zaman was removed for a score of 46 off 35 balls. Not a single batter reached double digits, with the exception of the top three.
A potent Indian batting order made it look easy to chase the 147-run mark. However, Pakistan’s bowlers got off to a quick start, dismissing Suryakumar Yadav and Abhishek Sharma, the tournament’s top run scorer, in the first three overs.
Under duress, Indian supporters would have hoped that vice captain Shubman Gill would step up. But he failed to cross Haris Rauf at mid-on with a flat pull in the fourth over, wasting his wicket.
Rauf somewhat overbalanced, but he timed his jump perfectly and made the catch. The wicket thrilled Faheem Ashraf, who stood in front of a dejected Gill and roared with joy.
Watch the dismissal video below:
“Shubman Gill departs 😓
Pressure on Sanju & Tilak now!
India 🇮🇳 badly need a solid partnership here” 🏏🔥#INDvPAK #AsiaCup2025 | Abhishek Sharma | Surya Kumar Yadav | Faheem Ashraf | pic.twitter.com/FueOEFpZIU
— Harsh Vardhan (@harshvard100710) September 28, 2025
With only 127 runs in seven innings at an average of 21.17 and a strike rate of 151.19, Shubman had a dismal tournament. He only managed to reach 47, falling short of a half-century.
India
