Pakistan beat India by four wickets in Hong Kong Sixes, chasing 89 in 23 balls

India and Pakistan met in the Hong Kong Sixes tournament, and Indian fans were left disappointed as Pakistan won by four wickets. The match was played over six overs a side.

Pakistan, captained by Abbas Afridi, are the defending champions. They won the toss and chose to bowl first. Batting first, India made 88 for 1 in six overs. The innings was highlighted by Shashank Singh's hard-hitting batting. Shashank is reported to have made 40 off 11 balls, and he made the biggest impact for India.

Nitish Rana made 19 off 14 balls before retiring hurt.

Needing 89 to win, Pakistan reached the target in just 23 balls, or 3.5 overs, with four wickets in hand. India's bowlers were poor in the match. Spinner Krunal Pandya was hit for five sixes by a Pakistan batter in a single over, and he conceded 31 runs in his first over. The match tilted fully towards Pakistan from there.

In their previous match, Pakistan had lost to the UAE.

Each team fields six players in the Hong Kong Sixes. India's squad comprised Nitish Rana, Rahul Tripathi, Rahul Tewatia (wicketkeeper), Krunal Pandya (captain), Shashank Singh, Kulwant Khejroliya and T Natarajan. Pakistan's team included Khawaja Nafay (wicketkeeper), Abdul Samad, Abbas Afridi (captain), Irfan Khan, Ahmed Daniyal and Mohammad Shahzad.

The tournament was started so that Hong Kong's cricketers and fans could watch the world's top international players on the field. In the 1990s Hong Kong's cricket team was an associate member of the ICC, so it did not get many opportunities or platforms to play against players from the bigger, established cricketing nations. This desire among the players and fans there led to the start of the unusual event.