The Indian team management had been wary on two counts ahead of the much-hyped Sunday showdown against Pakistan. As leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed tried to turn the ball in to the lefthander in his first over, Ishan slog swept him over the ropes. By then, Pakistan had realised it would be tough to put a leash on Ishan’s unconventional ways. That the second-highest run-scorer of the innings after Ishan’s 77 off 40 was Surya (32 off 29) in itself tells a story. Ishan’s innings will be remembered for long, much like Virat Kohli’s epic in Melbourne more than three years ago or Sachin Tendulkar’s trend-setting 98 at Centurion in the 2003 ODI World Cup.

Source: The Telegraph February 17, 2026 04:50 UTC