Pakistan great Younis Khan’s premature statement of completing ‘revenge’ against India backfired as his team lost the World Championship of Legends final to Yuvraj Singh’s side. Pakistan Legends had defeated India Legends in the league stage of the campaign, prompting Younis to say that it was a revenge of the defeat that Babar Azam’s Pakistan team had faced against India in the T20 World Cup 2024. However, as the two teams met again in the final, India Legends secured a comfortable victory against Pakistan Legends.
After the WCL final loss against India, Younis had no hesitation in admitting that the Indian team played like ‘true legends’ and that the players were better in all three departments of the game.
“Congratulations to India, they played like true legends,” Younis commented. “They excelled in all three departments. Our game plan was to build a defendable total, but crucial partnerships are essential in finals. India formed the partnerships needed to chase down our score, something we failed to do, unlike in the semi-finals where we had strong partnerships.”
With the final, the inaugural World Championship of Legends league concluded in Birmingham.
“The level of cricket was outstanding. My expectations before the tournament were different, but I’m proud of our team’s effort,” Younis further said.
Earlier, after his team’s victory against India Legends, the former Pakistan captain had said: “We took the revenge by defeating India”.
6th July – Younis Khan in the League stage – “we took the revenge by defeating India”.
13th July – INDIA DEFEATED PAKISTAN IN THE FINAL OF THE SAME TOURNAMENT. 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/0lJK6YvVPI
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) July 13, 2024
Chasing a target of 157 runs, India overhauled the total with 5 balls to spare. Despite losing Robin Uthappa (10) early, Ambati Rayudu’s explosive 50 off 30 balls set the foundation for the chase for the Indian team.
Suresh Raina too departed cheaply for 4 in the same over, helping Pakistan make a comeback. But a strong partnership between Rayudu and Gurkeerat Singh Maan (34 off 33) kept India on track.
Rayudu and Mann also departed in a space of 10 runs but the momentum stayed firmly in India’s favour with Yusuf Pathan’s blistering 30 off 16 balls before the latter was dismissed in the penultimate over.
With captain Yuvraj Singh (15*) and Irfan Pathan (5*) at the crease, India sealed the win, finishing at 159 for 5 in 19.1 overs, much to the delight of their fans.
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