Gautam Gambhir slammed the table in raw emotion as Tilak Varma’s six paved the way for Rinku Singh’s winning boundary, sealing India’s record ninth Asia Cup crown.

India Hold Nerve in Final Over to Retain Asia Cup

The tense chase, in front of a packed Dubai International Stadium on Sunday, came down to the final over. Pakistan stormed back into the game with the dismissal of Shivam Dube on the last ball of the penultimate over. The anxiety weighed heavily on both dressing rooms—not even India head coach Gautam Gambhir was spared. He finally let his emotions out as Tilak Varma delivered the finishing blow, smashing a six off Haris Rauf on the second ball of the over. India sealed the chase of 147 two balls later to retain the Asia Cup crown.

Pakistan may have had the momentum going into the final over, having just dismissed the well-set Dube. However, the Salam Agha-led side were penalised for slow over-rate and, as a result, were forced to bring an extra fielder inside the ring.

Gautam Gambhir’s Emotional Celebration as India Clinch Historic Asia Cup Title

Haris Rauf, who had a difficult outing on Sunday evening in Dubai, stuck to his plan of bowling across to left-handed batter Tilak. After conceding two off the first ball with the batter looking to access the square-leg region, the India star capitalised as the bowler changed his plan of bowling into the wicket. Against the hard-length ball, Tilak nailed the pull shot in front of square to smash an 80-metre six.

The Indian spectators at the ground went berserk, and so did Gautam Gambhir in the dressing room. In an unseen display of untamed emotions, the former India batter repeatedly banged the table to celebrate the six that brought down the equation from 8 needed off 5 to 2 needed off 4 balls. Every slam reflected the pressure, anticipation, and sheer passion coursing through him as the game reached a critical juncture.

A delivery later, Rinku Singh, facing his first ball in the entire tournament on his debut appearance in the Asia Cup 2025, struck the winning run — a boundary through mid-wicket — as India secured the Asia Cup title for a record-extending ninth time in history.

After Rinku’s winning shot, Gambhir jumped out of his seat to celebrate, later heading out onto the ground to embrace Tilak for his stunning batting performance.

Us Gambhir Us😭😭😎🫶#AsiaCupFinal #indvspak2025

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— Sarcasm (@sarcastic_us) September 28, 2025

Having slumped to 20 for three inside the first five overs, Tilak (69 not out off 53 balls) was composed and audacious in equal measure, with Sanju Samson (24) and Shivam Dube (33 off 21 balls) proving to be brilliant support acts as India chased down 147 in 19.4 overs.

Earlier in the evening, Indian spinners delivered a masterclass to bowl out Pakistan for 146 in 19.1 overs. Kuldeep Yadav was the wrecker-in-chief with a four-wicket haul, while Axar Patel and Varun Chakaravarthy chipped in with two wickets each. Jasprit Bumrah also bagged two crucial scalps to keep Pakistan in check.