On Sunday, June 18, Pakistan defeated India in an incredible victory at the International Cricket Council Champions Trophy 2017 Final at The Oval in South London. It isn’t an exaggeration to say that in India and Pakistan, and amongst the South Asian diaspora abroad,all eyes were glued to their TV screens on Sunday—such is the popularity of cricket in the region, and the magnitude of an India-Pakistan clash.

It was a match for the history books as underdogs Pakistan battered favorites India, particularly given the colossal rivalry the two teams have long shared. It was an encounter that any sports lover would relish—even Indians like myself, devastated by the loss, could not deny that it was the sort of match that reminds us why sport is so special.

The last time the two countries faced each other in the final of an ICC event was 10 years ago at the 2007 World T20 in South Africa, when MS Dhoni led India to a memorable victory. Over the decade since then, India has won a World Cup and a Champions Trophy and has been the world’s best side in all formats. India’s Virat Kohli has become recognized as among the world’s greatest batsmen of all time. For the most part it’s been accolade after accolade, a sort of golden age for Indian cricket.

Sadly, Pakistani cricket suffered a steady decline in the same period. A devastating terrorist attack in 2009 in Lahore, on the Sri Lanka team bus brought an end to international cricket in the country. Pakistan then lost their captain and top two bowlers to long suspensions due to a spot-fixing scandal in 2010. They were the lowest ranked side going into this year’s Champions Trophy. Most thought they wouldn’t even make it past the group stage.

Their first fixture was against India, and even though it was just the beginning of the tournament, it was a highly anticipated encounter because in recent years, for very unfortunate reasons, the two teams have rarely played each other. In the eight years after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, India and Pakistan have faced one another only 16 times. To put this figure in context, India has played against England, for example, over 50 times in that same period.

Pakistan lost that first match by 124 runs, outclassed by India in all departments. The team looked under-confident and devoid of creativity, and cricket pundits across the world discussed just how far behind Pakistan had fallen in modern limited overs cricket. No one could have imagined at this point that the same team would proceed to win the title, turning the tables against the same opposition. But several surprising twists in their fortunes awaited.

Pakistan won against South Africa in a rain-affected match, only to then manage another win against Sri Lanka. Suddenly they were in the semi-final, set to face hosts and favorites, England. But because rain had affected several other results as well, many thought Pakistan’s position was more thanks to luck than skill. Surely they’d be knocked out now. England hadn’t yet lost a single match in the tournament and they’d beaten Pakistan in an ODI series in 2016. The odds were clearly stacked in their favor. The result however, would tell an entirely different story--of Pakistan’s tremendous resilience and determination, and the sheer unpredictability of sport.

Against England, Pakistan demonstrated a remarkable turnaround in performance. They batted well, and bowled superbly. In a matter of days, they had somehow become a strong, cohesive unit.

The tournament couldn’t have hoped for a more exciting final than India versus Pakistan -– it’s arguably the most mouthwatering rivalry in international cricket, and a dream for advertisers, given the staggering viewing figures these encounters draw. Despite Pakistan’s intense and inspired turnaround, India were the favorites, and Indian fans were confident that their men in blue would emerge easy winners.

India won the toss and chose to bowl. At this point, the general consensus across spectators, TV pundits and social media was that India would be able to chase down whatever Pakistan scored. But Pakistan proved to be the dark horse on the day. It became clear fairly quickly that they’d been heavily underestimated.

Pakistan’s Fakhar Zaman who was caught off a no-ball from Jusprit Bumrah early on in his innings went on to score a fantastic 114 runs. His first ODI century contributed to his team’s  tremendous total of 338/4. Then, when it was India’s turn to bat, three early wickets came at the hands of Mohammad Amir, heralding the beginning of the end for India. Azhar Ali dropped an easy catch that would have put down Indian captain Virat Kohli, but he was caught out right after by Shadab Khan. Upon review, a seemingly unsuccessful LBW shout against Yuvraj Singh was decreed, and India were now 54/4. The next over, MS Dhoni was caught out and it was 54/5. India would need nothing short of a miracle to recover from here.

Pakistan managed to bowl India out for just 158, winning by an unbelievable 180 runs. India’s die hard cricket fans were heartbroken, some reported to have even smashed their TV screens in dismay. But India’s captain Virat Kohli was gracious in defeat, congratulating Pakistan and whole-heartedly conceding that the men in green were indeed the better team on the day.

Pakistan won an ODI title for the first time in over two decades. Their thrilling journey proves irrefutably that in sport, as in life, anything is possible.

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