Pakistan’s mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed produced a moment of magic, delivering the ball of the match to dismiss India’s in-form opener, Shubman Gill, in the 18th over of their ICC Champions Trophy 2025 Group A clash. The delivery was so spectacular that even Virat Kohli, standing at the non-striker’s end, appeared awestruck. As Gill’s stumps were shattered, Abrar celebrated with an animated send-off, gesturing towards the pavilion, adding an extra spark to the already intense rivalry.
Veteran cricketer Sunil Gavaskar, commentating on the game, likened Abrar’s delivery to Ravichandran Ashwin’s famous carrom ball, emphasizing the brilliance of the deception. On the third ball of the over, Abrar bowled a skidding leg-break that completely squared up Gill. The ball gripped, turned sharply, and sneaked past Gill’s bat to crash into the stumps, ending his composed knock of 46 off 52 balls.
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As Pakistan’s fans erupted in celebration, Abrar’s send-off to Gill fueled the drama. Kohli’s reaction was priceless—his impressed expression said it all. Earlier in the innings, Abrar had locked eyes with Kohli in an intense stare-down, but the Indian maestro simply responded with a knowing smile, refusing to engage in any verbal exchanges.
Shubhman gill dismissed on 46(52) by Abrar Ahmed#ChampionsTrophy #INDvsPAK pic.twitter.com/uPQQY8xRTE
— D Decoded Reality (@DDecodedReality) February 23, 2025
Shaheen Afridi had earlier dealt India a major blow by dismissing Rohit Sharma for 20 off 15 balls. The left-arm pacer delivered a textbook inswinging yorker, leaving the Indian skipper with no time to react as the ball demolished his stumps. Despite the setback, Rohit created history by surpassing Sachin Tendulkar to become the fastest opener to reach 9,000 ODI runs. Meanwhile, Kohli also entered the record books, becoming the fastest to cross 14,000 ODI runs.
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Pakistan, having won the toss and opted to bat, was bowled out for 241, failing to complete their full quota of 50 overs. Kuldeep Yadav starred for India with three wickets, while Saud Shakeel top-scored for Pakistan. The Men in Green made a solitary change to their XI, with Imam-ul-Haq replacing the injured Fakhar Zaman, who has been ruled out of the tournament.
