The whole nation erupted in joy when Team India came with an all-round performance to
defeat arch-rival Pakistan by 124 runs through Duckworth-Lewis (D/L) method in a one-sided Champions Trophy encounter at the Edgbaston Cricket Ground here on Sunday.
Amidst the happy crowd was the face Bollywood fans in and outside India have grown up watching and loving - megastar Amitabh Bachchan.
Big B, who was an attendee of the high-octane clash, later took to Twitter to express his elation over the victory.
"T 2445 - And CONGRATULATIONS INDIA .. !! beat Pak in CL cricket by huge margin .. great to see all performing good
T 2445 - And CONGRATULATIONS INDIA .. !! beat Pak in CL cricket by huge margin .. great to see all performing good !! pic.twitter.com/ae3wwnY3GO
— Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) June 4, 2017
Livewire actor Ranveer Singh was also one of the high-profile guests at the match. Ranveer's wishes to Team India was quite akin to his flamboyant personality.
He tweeted, "What a match the boys played! Scintillating all round performance! Banging start to the tournament!
What a match the boys played! Scintillating all round performance! Banging start to the tournament! ๐ฎ๐ณ๐๐ฅ #INDvPAK
— Ranveer Singh (@RanveerOfficial) June 4, 2017
The India vs Pakistan match had Twitter abuzz with stars like Big B, Abhishek Bachchan and Ranveer taking time off to wish Team India luck on Twitter.
C'mon India, lets do this!!! ๐ฎ๐ณ
— Abhishek Bachchan (@juniorbachchan) June 4, 2017
๐ฎ๐ณvs ๐ต๐ฐ @ Jalsa - Amitabh Bachchans Residence https://t.co/UtO7jHrAkr
COME ON INDIA !!!!! ๐ฎ๐ณ ๐ฎ๐ณ ๐ฎ๐ณ ๐ฎ๐ณ ๐ฎ๐ณ #INDvPAK
— Ranveer Singh (@RanveerOfficial) June 4, 2017
Headlining the guest-list at Edgbaston was legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, along with his wife Anjali. Actor Dhanush later took to Twitter to post a picture with Tendulkar.
At the stadium .. Ind vs pak.. champions trophy :) and got to meet the one and only god of cricket @sachin_rt ๐๐๐ adrenaline pumping pic.twitter.com/YQclMUwRyS
— Dhanush (@dhanushkraja) June 4, 2017
Chasing a revised target of 289 runs in 41 overs, Pakistan were bundled out for 164 runs with Wahab Riaz not coming to bat because of an injury he sustained during India's innings.
Except for opener Azhar Ali, none of the Pakistani batters could stay for a long time at the crease and cope up with the pressure - of the target as well as of the Indian bowlers.
Pakistan were eventually bundled out for 164 for 9. Umesh Yadav was the pick of the bowlers for India as he finished with the figures of three for 30 while Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya took two wickets each.
Bhuvaneshwar Kumar also chipped in with a wicket. Earlier, put in to bat first, openers Rohit Sharma (91) and Shikhar Dhawan (68) provided their side with a perfect start as not only did they blast half-centuries each, but also went on to stitch a huge 136-run stand, thus making them the most successful opening pair in the history of the eight-team marquee event.
Subsequently, skipper Virat Kohli (unbeaten at 81) and Yuvraj Singh (53) continued the good work put in by the openers as they too scored aggressive fifties to guide India past the 300-plus mark.
Yuvraj was declared 'Man of the Match' for his brilliant batting performance. The Kohli-led side will now lock horns against Sri Lanka at the Kennington Oval in London on June 8.
-ANI