This victory marks India's second win over Pakistan in the tournament, following their group-stage triumph.
Pakistan, opting to bat after losing the toss, posted 171/5 in 20 overs. Opener Sahibzada Farhan led the charge with a gritty 58 off 45, celebrating his fifty with a controversial 'gun-firing' gesture amid tense India-Pakistan relations. Fakhar Zaman chipped in with 15 off 9, but India's bowlers tightened the screws in the middle overs. Shivam Dube shone with 2/33, dismissing Farhan and Saim Ayub (21 off 17), while Kuldeep Yadav and Hardik Pandya claimed one each. Jasprit Bumrah and Varun Chakravarthy went wicketless, but India's fielding woes dropping five catches kept Pakistan in the game.
Chasing, India's openers fired on all cylinders. Abhishek and Shubman Gill (47 off 28) forged a 105-run stand, dismantling Pakistan's attack. Haris Rauf (2 wickets) dismissed Gill and Suryakumar Yadav (duck), but Tilak Varma's quickfire 22* sealed the deal with balls to spare. Player of the Match Abhishek said, "I went after them because they were coming at us without reason," highlighting the fiery on-field exchanges.
Captain Suryakumar Yadav praised the team's composure: "The boys showed character; it's like fire and ice with Abhishek and Gill." Pakistan's Salman Agha rued the powerplay collapse: "We could have got 10-15 more."
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