5 Reasons why India defeated Pakistan 

The highly anticipated clash between arch rivals India and Pakistan has finally concluded and it is the Men in Blue who have outclassed their opponents clinically by 8 wickets with 21 overs to spare.

Taking field within 24 hours of surviving a horrifying scare against minnows Hong Kong, the Indians produced a spirited performance, boosted by the return of Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya into the squad. Although Pandya was forced to leave the ground on account of a back injury, Bumrah and company bowled Pakistan out of the game with their disciplined efforts.

Pakistan entered as heavy favourites in this crucial Group A encounter, with most of the odds in their favour. Pakistan's battery of left arm seamers along with Hasan Ali promised a great threat to the unsettled Indian middle order in the absence of talisman Virat Kohli. Dubai has been the home ground for Pakistan for quite some time now and they were supposed to exploit the conditions to the fullest. The team also came fresh into the match while Team India took field within a day after prevailing over Hong Kong, with several areas of concern. The last time these teams met was in the 2017 Champions Trophy Final, where it was the Pakistani team that emerged victorious by 180 runs, clinching the title.

However, on the given day, it was the India that defied all odds to produce a dominant performance over their arch-rivals in all the departments, playing a superior brand of cricket.

We look at the 5 reasons due to which India outclassed their opponents.

#1 The blistering start by the pacers

Bhuvi and Bumrah got India off to a flying start

Winning the toss, Pakistani captain Sarfaraz Ahmed opted to bat first. However, his decision was let down by his batsmen, who got off to a terrible start. The duo of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah who started the proceedings for India after a gap of 6 months were blitz. While Bumrah restricted the flow of runs by bowling two maidens upfront, Bhuvneshwar registered his name in the share of wickets by sending both the openers to the pavilion.

While Imam-ul-Haq was caught behind by MS Dhoni, Fakhar Zaman, the hero of the Champions Trophy final, mistimed a short ball into the hands of Yuzvendra Chahal, without opening his account.

The contributions of the openers were considered to be crucial for the team, however, Bhuvi removed them in a space of 4 overs and 3 runs, further restricting the score to 25 runs in the mandatory powerplay. The openers could not set the tone of the innings and it largely hampered Pakistan's chances.

#2 Immaturity of Pakistan's middle order

The middle order failed comprehensively

With both the openers dismissed early the onus was on World No. 2 Babar Azam and the seasoned Shoaib Malik to anchor the team's score.The two batted patiently and took their chances at the right occasions on course their 82-run stand for the 3rd wicket. However, the dismissal of Babar Azam triggered a collapse, which was largely an outcome of the immaturity of the middle order.

While Azam fell to a beauty by Kuldeep Yadav, Shoaib Malik survived a chance soon after on the bowling of the chinaman bowler, with Bhuvi failing to hold on to the catch. The very next over, captain Sarfaraz hit part-timer Kedar Jadhav over the mid-wicket for a six, only to get caught at the hands of a sprinting Manish Pandey. Shoaib Malik got run out soon after, while Asif Ali and Shadab Khan lost their wickets in a bid to accelerate instead of stabilising the innings.

The Pakistani innings, which was cruising at one point, suddenly lost all the substance with all their batsmen back in the dressing room.

#3 Sensational fielding by Manish Pandey and Ambati Rayudu

Manish Pandey took a stunning catch to dismiss Sarfaraz Ahmed

Kuldeep Yadav managed to break the 82-run stand between Azam and Malik, like he has been doing with unerring consistency in the recent past. However, the duo of Malik and Sarfaraz still posted a threat for the Men in Blue, with Malik already being set at the middle.

However, two sensational exhibits of athleticism did the job for India, as substitute fielder Manish Pandey covered some distance to gather the ball off the bat of Sarfaraz Ahmed, maintaining his balance and grasping the ball after keeping it in play.

After a couple of overs, once again on Jadhav's bowling it was Ambati Rayudu who produced a brilliant direct hit to dismiss a baffled Shoaib Malik on the non-striker's end.

These two dismissals came at a critical stage of the match and were instrumental in largely shifting the momentum in India's favour.

#4 The brilliance of Kedar Jadhav

Kedar Jadhav shined in the middle overs with 3 wickets

Kedar Jadhav, who entered into the team as a batsman who could keep the wickets when needed, has transformed himself into a reliable exponent of spin bowling, who provides the option of a sixth bowler to his captain.

After Hardik Pandya was forced to take treatment following a back injury, the final quota of 10 overs turned out to be a concern for Rohit Sharma. After getting a much needed break through in the form of Babar Azam in the 22nd over, Rohit introduced Jadhav into the bowling attack.

The move paid rich dividends, as Jadhav, with his highly unorthodox action and height variations made life difficult for the batsmen. He claimed the priced scalp of the Pakistani captain in his second over, and forced Shoaib Malik to make an error of judgement with his tight bowling. Jadhav further sent Asif Ali and Shadab Khan packing with his perplexing style, ending with figures of 3-23 in his 9 overs, including 1 maiden.

Kedar Jadhav, along with the spin twins of Kuldeep and Chahal, weaved a vicious web around the Pakistan batsmen in the middle overs, running through their batting line up, and bowling them out for 162.

#5 The swashbuckling opening partnership by Indians

The openers gave a swashbuckling start

A target of 163 was never daunting for the Indian batting line up in any conditions. However, any inhibitions were blown away by openers Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma, as they came out all guns blazing.

Rohit started off the innings in an aggressive fashion, targeting both left arm seamers Mohamad Amir and Usman Khan. The openers made the most of the powerplay, playing some elegant strokes in the first 10 overs.

Hitman raced away to his fifty in thirty-six balls, hitting three monstrous sixes in the process, while Shikhar Dhawan continued his good form with a brisk 46. Defending a below par target required a fiery bowling effort upfront, and with the Indian openers putting up a stand of 86 with their controlled aggression, all the hopes of Pakistan faded into oblivion.