It was an incredible day for the Indian fans who arrived in numbers at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 20-20 World Cup 2022 for the Super 12 Stage clash between India and Pakistan and they witnessed a knock for the ages from none other than Virat Kohli.
The commentators on-air call him ‘King Kohli’ for a reason, and he produced a performance of class to help India chase down 160 that once seemed improbable.
Chasing 160 to win, India faced a top-order collapse and were reduced to 31 for 4 in the seventh over. Kohli and Hardik Pandya put on a 113-run partnership to keep the hopes alive and their belief came true in the end. The 33-year-old managed to time the ball while the other batters found it tough and his astonishing innings of unbeaten 82 off 53 balls sealed a historic victory for the Men in Blue.
While most batters would have succumbed under pressure, Kohli had the belief and managed to get India over the line with incredible six-hitting. The crowd went wild over Kohli’s knock and he himself cherished speaking about it after the game.
Virat Kohli was running short of words while he watched the crowd applaud and stated Pandya’s belief a key factor in his innings. He mentioned how he took calculated risks against certain bowlers and was rewarded for it in the end. The 33-year-old further added that he backed his instincts and revealed that the knock against Pakistan will surely be at the top of his best innings list.
“It’s a surreal atmosphere, I have no words, no idea how that happened. I am really lost for words. Hardik believed we can do it if we stay till the end. When Shaheen bowled from the pavilion end, that’s when we decided to take him down. Haris is their prime bowler, and I hit those two sixes. The calculation was simple. Nawaz had one over to bowl, so if I could take Haris down, they would panic,” Kohli told in the post-match conference.
“From 28 in 8, it came down to 16 from 6. I tried to stick to my instincts. The first one was a slower ball (the one over long-on). Standing here I just feel like it was meant to be. Till today Mohali was my best innings against Australia. Today I will count this one higher. Hardik kept pushing me. The crowd has been phenomenal. You guys (fans) kept backing me and I am grateful for your support,” he added.
