Abhishek's powerful fifty gives India solid win over Pakistan in Super 4s clash. Again, no handshake

The script remained the same; India beat Pakistan and once again denied them sportmanly handshakes in the Asia Cup.

An opening stand of 105 held by Abhishek Sharma (74) and Shubman Gill (47) made the chase of 171/5 look easy. But Pakistan somehow dragged the encounter deep into the 19th over, losing by six wickets still, in the Super 4s clash in Dubai.

Pakistan had been determined to make amends for their poor showing in the previous meeting in the league phase, in which they made 127/9 and lost by seven wickets.

This time, they were aggressive from the off and set a target of 172, with opener Sahibzada Farhan making 58. But India's enviable opening pair packed a punch, hitting 14 boundaries and five sixes between them.

Though the foundation was solid, India threw away wickets; Sharma pulled a wide one from Abrar Ahmed into the hands of Haris Rauf, who came rushing from the deep to take a smart catch.

That attempt in the field should be something the Indians could take inspiration from having dropped no fewer than five catches earlier. Sharma dropped two, Kuldeep once and even vice-captain Gill dropped a sitter.

Skipper Suryakumar Yadav's early dismissal (0) meant Sanju Samson was promoted to No 4. The Kerala wicketkeeper, who hit a smart fifty against Oman, wasn't at his best. A glorious cover drive aside, Sanju couldn't counter the slow and gripping conditions and was castled by an inswinger from Rauf. But Tilak Varma (30 not out off 19) ensured that the job was done, with seven balls to spare.

Earlier, Pakistan were 91/1 in 10 overs, thanks to Farhan's aggressive approach. Shivam Dube was the pick of the bowlers, bagging 2/33, while Jasprit Bumrah bowled his most expensive powerplay spell in T20s (34 runs) and went wicketless.

During the toss, which Suryakumar won, the cameras zoomed in on the hands of the captains, when Salman Ali Agha met his Indian counterpart in the middle. It was more of the same: No handshake, not even a friendly smile.

Pakistan will play Sri Lanka and India meet Bangladesh in their next Super 4s matches on Monday and Tuesday respectively.

Brief scores: Pakistan 171/5 in 20 overs (Sahibzada Farhan 58, Shivam Dube 2/33) lost to India 174/4 in 18.5 overs (Abhishek Sharma 74, Shubman Gill 47, Tilak Varma 30 not out, Haris Rauf 2/26)