India, Feb. 17 -- Axar Patel stood with his hands stretched, a smile beaming across his face. He just had Pakistan batter Usman Khan stumped by Ishan Kishan by a mile for 44. The dismissal reduced Pakistan to 73 for five, signalling a realistic end to their chase of 176 in the high-voltage T20 World Cup match on Sunday. From a match perspective, the left-arm spinner's celebration was perhaps triggered by the realisation that he had all but ended Pakistan's hopes.

But it could also have been something deeply personal. Usman had smashed Axar for six boundaries in his 34-ball innings, including back-to-back fours on two occasions. However, the critical moment of his dismissal was hardly dramatic. There was no magic like what Kuldeep Yadav o...