Virat Kohli reminded the world why he is adoringly known as the 'King'. The former skipper played his best-ever innings -- his words -- as India snatched victory from the jaws of defeat thanks to his sensational unbeaten knock of 82 (53).
Here is a look at some of the talking points from the high-octane match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
1) King Kohli is back
The Virat Kohli of 2016 is back! The all-time great displayed a chasing masterclass to guide India to a brilliant victory on Sunday. Kohli, over the years, has been known to chase targets his predecessors would usually fall short of, and on Sunday India chased 160 from a dire position of 31/4 thanks to his heroics. But in recent years ,he seemed to have lost a bit of his Midas touch, with many calling for his head from the T20 team.
In July, August: Should we drop Kohli, Should Kohli travel to Australia, Should Kohli deserve a spot in T20IRelated stories
On October 23rd: India 26/3(5.3) while chasing 160 runs & Virat Kohli scored 82*(53) to help India beat Pakistan in the World Cup
What a perfect script by the great man.
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) October 23, 2022
On Sunday, 'King' Kohli proved his doubters spectacularly wrong with an innings he calls his career's best.
Also read: India vs Pakistan: Free hit byes proof of Virat Kohli's exceptional match awareness
Kohli paced his innings beautifully and came good towards the back end of the innings, smashing 67 runs in his final 29 balls. Kohli hit three fours of Shaheen Shah Afridi in the 18th over, two brilliant sixes in the 19th of Haris Rauf's bowling, and the crucial no-ball six in the dramatic last over, which Mohammad Nawaz bowled.
There's a reason why Virat Kohli is goated in chases #T20WorldCuppic.twitter.com/IMn4G4TVHL— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) October 23, 2022
This innings meant a lot to Kohli as he broke into tears after the final ball.
2) Swing is King
The Indian bowlers displayed a brilliant exhibition of swing bowling as the Pakistani batsmen found it hard to get a move on during the powerplay. Leading the way was Arshdeep Singh, who trapped opposition skipper Babar Azam plumb in front for a golden duck with his first-ever ball in a T20 World Cup. The 23-year-old left-arm quick was impressive on his WC debut with figures of 3/32 from his four overs.
In the midst of all this let's not forget the Golden Duck for Babar Azam by one and only, Arshdeep.pic.twitter.com/KLso75y02x— Cricketopia (@CricketopiaCom) October 23, 2022
Bhuvaneshwar Kumar was also brilliant with the new ball, with Mohammad Rizwan particularly at sea while facing Kumar's new-ball onslaught. The veteran showed his class by swinging the ball both ways as he kept Rizwan guessing his next move. He was the most economical bowler for India on the night, returning figures of 1/22 in his four overs.
Some quality bowling from quick bowlers to restrict Pakistan #BhuvaneshwarKumar#HardikPandya#ArshdeepSingh#MohammedShami#INDvsPAK#T20WorldCuppic.twitter.com/OK573B4xvb— HIMMAT SINGH GURJAR -हिम्मत सिंह गुर्जर (@himmatsinghgur1) October 23, 2022
3) DK is Numero Uno
Dinesh Karthik was preferred over the explosive Rishabh Pant for the wicketkeeping slot and the veteran showed why that will be the case for the rest of the tournament. DK was impeccable behind the stumps and made a spectacular diving save in the first over to stop Pakistan from getting five wide runs. DK is also in the team as a finisher but was unable to showcase that in yesterday's thriller.
Amazing stop by Dinesh Karthik. pic.twitter.com/2WvjuT6Xmb— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) October 23, 2022
However, with the gloves, he looked more composed than Pant. And with the middle order packed as it is, the left-handed Pant will find it hard to break into the starting XI.
4) No Babar-Rizwan, no problem
The Pakistan lineup is accused of being too top-heavy, and the notion is further cemented when the stats indicate that Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have scored half of Pakistan's runs in 2022.
Once Iftikhar Ahmad said: "Hitting sixes in Australia isn't difficult for me "
And you all laughed at him. #Chacha#PakVsInd#chacha pic.twitter.com/jZdDq3bjrV— SAGHEER AHMAD(@Miansagheer57) October 23, 2022
However, new heroes emerged after the openers fell cheaply. Shan Masood (52* of 42) and Iftikhar Ahmed (51 of 34) steadied the ship after the early wickets, with the latter playing the more aggressive role of the two. Ahmed took a particular liking to Axar Patel, smashing him for three sixes in an over. Masood, on the other hand, carried his bat until the very end to help Pakistan score a competitive total, which almost proved to be match-winning.
5) Ashwin's 'Big Brain' moment
While Kohli displayed his never-say-die attitude yesterday, spinner R Ashwin showed why he is one of the smartest cricketers on the field.
If the fate of the world rests on someone deciding whether to cut the red wire or the black wire, with 2 seconds remaining, I think we can all agree we give the pliers to Ashwin. #INDvPAK#T20worldcup— Melinda Farrell (@melindafarrell) October 23, 2022
Despite conceding a no-ball six and 3 byes, which isn't his fault, Mohammad Nawaz was doing a great job stifling the Indian batsmen in the final over. The left-arm spinner was firing the ball on the leg stump to cramp the batsmen for room. This even resulted in Dinesh Karthik losing his wicket, as he couldn't free his arms for a big shot as he got stumped in the process of forcing one.
Ashwin seemed to have noticed Nawaz's leg-stump tactic. The Indian spinner, who strode in after DK's dismissal, needed to score two runs off the final ball. Instead of going for a big shot, Ashwin cooly left Nawaz's leg-side delivery which the umpired declared as a wide.
This was marvellous @ashwinravi99 what a cool presence of mind on the last ball!!!
Anyone in the world would have tried to hit it. Even @DineshKarthik got out hitting a probable wide ball.
You're too smart, #Ashwin
This was THE MOMENT of the match for me #INDvsPAKpic.twitter.com/FIO95Xv7a0— Harsh हर्ष (@HarshAgarwalHM) October 23, 2022
This levelled the scores but more importantly sent Nawaz into a panic as he held his head in disbelief. This forced Nawaz to bowl the final ball a lot straighter to Ashwin, and the Indian offie effortlessly lifted the ball above mid-off to win the game and broke into a sprint as Kohli ran down the other end and fell to the ground in ecstasy.
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