3 recent times India won a match off the last ball
It wouldn’t be unfair to say its India’s reign in limited overs format cricket. Hardly any team has looked comfortable or dangerous against India in the recent times. Although the most hyped India-Pakistan clash happened twice in the recently concluded Asia Cup, sadly neither of them stood up to the expectations of the fans.
It’s also to be appreciated that the so-called ‘minnows’ like Afghanistan, Bangladesh provided some worth the money moments to the Indian fans with nail-biting moments in their encounters with the men in blue. A perfect match is one such match which goes on till the last ball to decide the winner with the pendulum swinging across the teams throughout the match.
Here we list 3 such matches where India seized the match in the very last ball:
#1 India vs Bangladesh 2018, Asia Cup finals
The final of the recently completed Asia Cup between India and Bangladesh was a nerve-wracking affair. India won the toss in the all-important clash and decided to bowl first. Bangladesh batting started explosively with Liton Das smashing boundaries at ease along with the experimental opener Mehidy Hasan. The CT 2017 finals flashed across the minds of cricketing fans for a while. India heaved a sigh of relief when Kedar Jadhav broke the opening partnership.
After that, it was India all the way as the Bangla tigers couldn’t stand face the Indian attack and were bowled out for 222. Chasing 223, India kept losing wickets at regular intervals as none of the batsmen converted the starts they got. Kedar Jadhav who was going well had to return to the pavilion as he suffered from Hamstring Injury.
Ravindra Jadeja and Bhuvneshwar Kumar removed the pressure with occasional boundaries. India still required 13 off last 18 balls with 4 wickets remaining. As Jadeja nicked an edge to Rahim, Jadhav was forced to return to the crease. India required 9 off last 12 balls. With an excellent over from Mustafizur Rahman, it came down to run-a-ball last over to clinch the title. Indians fans didn’t find any nails to bite. Kuldeep Yadav who was in strike guided the ball across long off thus stealing a single. 5 runs off 5 balls, yet another single from Jadhav to make it 4 off 4.
A confident shot from Kuldeep gained 2 crucial runs for India as the equation was down to 2 off 3. Jadhav returned to strike for the final ball as 1 off 1 ball was required. Mahmudullah bowled the final ball, Jadhav couldn’t find bat but fortunately, it had hit the pads and ran towards the fine leg boundary. Jadhav stole a single and India had won the match. A fitting climax to the Asia Cup 2018, to be remembered until next edition.