Kuldeep, Varma give India ninth title

Wrist spinner claims four to bowl out Pak for 146 before left-hand batter slams fifty to help team lift Asia Cup

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SHIVAM Dube had just been dismissed, trying to smash Faheem Ashraf into the stands.

India needed 10 off eight balls to beat Pakistan in the final and Dube went for the glory. As he took the long walk back, India were five down, bringing in Rinku Singh-a batter playing his first match of the tournament to the middle.

Their hope, here, was Tilak Varma, who was settled and had a fifty next to his name. India trusted the left-hander from Hyderabad to get the ten runs needed off Haris Rauf. He started anxiously with an attempted lap, but off the second ball came the shot that all but sealed the contest and title-a whack into the deep midwicket stands from the meat of the bat. From thereon, it was just a formality with India needing two runs off four balls. Rinku, on the first ball he faced in the tournament, finished off in style as India won the continental title for the ninth time.