Despite an online boycott call targeting cricket with Pakistan, Google Trends in India showed heavy interest in the Asia Cup clash, with the top ten keywords dominated by Pakistan-India searches.
Search volumes for these keywords surged between 50,000 and more than two million within four hours, highlighting the public interest surrounding the high-voltage contest in Dubai.
On the field, Pakistan endured a shaky start against India in their Asia Cup 2025 encounter, losing early wickets and struggling to build partnerships on a lively surface.
Saim Ayub fell without scoring, while Mohammad Haris contributed only three runs. Fakhar Zaman struck 17 before edging behind, and Salman Ali Agha departed for just three, leaving Pakistan under pressure.
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India’s disciplined new-ball attack restricted scoring opportunities and removed key batters, reducing Pakistan to 49 for four by the tenth over, with their middle order forced into damage-control mode.
Despite the setbacks, Pakistan managed to reach 127 for nine after 20 overs, as Shaheen Shah Afridi’s blistering 31 off 15 balls, which included four towering sixes.
Afridi’s late fireworks gave Pakistan a defendable total, rescuing them from an otherwise underwhelming batting display against India’s aggressive bowling and sharp fielding.
In reply, India comfortably chased down the 128-run target with the loss of three wickets and five overs to spare.
In reply, India launched a fluent chase of the 128-run target, racing to 88 for two in ten overs, with their top order asserting dominance through precise shot-making.
