Virender Sehwag and Suresh Raina treated the Pakistan bowlers as if they were playing against some second grade side, helping India chase down a challenging 300-run target with ease.
Everyone was busy admiring the delectable cover drives unleashed by Raina when Sehwag also decided to join the run riot. There was no stopping them. The sixes and boundaries flowed, reducing the fielders to spectators. Soon, Sehwag crossed the three-figure mark, which came off just 80 balls, laced with 10 boundaries and five sixes.
Virender Sehwag porduced a superb innings of 119 on Thursday to power India to a crushing six-wicket win over Pakistan in their Asia Cup one-day match at the National stadium in Karachi. Sehwag scored his ninth one-day hundred in a 198-run second wicket partnership with Suresh Raina (84) to guide India to 301 for four after 42.1 overs in reply to Pakistan's total of 299 for four.
Suresh Raina, it seems, has finally arrived. The left-handed youngster, coming off a blinder of a century against Hong Kong on Wednesday, struck a smashing 84 off 69 balls with ten boundaries and three sixes.
The duo put on 198 runs for the second wicket, propelling India to the threshold of victory. The formalities were completed by Yuvraj Singh and Dhoni. India won by six wickets.
The knocks played by Sehwag and Raina weren't the only highlights of the day Earlier, the always . under pressure Pakistan skipper Shoaib Malik also struck a magnificent century to help his team post a challenging target. In the earlier part of the day, almost everything seemed to be going right for Malik. He won the toss on a flat track and the entire Pakistan batting line-up shrugged off the lethargy and vulnerability they showed the other day against Hong Kong.
The Pakistan innings was built broadly on the second-wicket partnership between Malik (125) and Younis (59). They dominated the middle overs, leaving the Indian bowlers almost clueless. The Indians finally breathed a sigh of relief when Malik retired-hurt due to cramps, but by then he had already put Pakistan firmly on course for a big total, smashing a superb 125.
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