As Virat Kohli was reaching close to the 3-figure mark against arch-rivals Pakistan, India's Axar Patel revealed he was doing calculation and hoping he does not edge the ball at the other to make sure the batting maestro reached his hundred. India needed 19 runs to win when Axar joined Kohli in the middle, who was batting on 86 at the moment.
"At the end, actually main bhi thoda maths kar raha tha unke hundred ke liye (Even I was doing the math for his hundred towards the end). I was hoping that I don't edge the ball or something. So, it was quite fun," Axar said in video posted by ICC.
However, Pakistan pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi bowled three wides in the 42nd over, which made Kohli's route to ton a little trickier. During the mega-clash, even Axar Patel was booed by the crowd a couple of times for taking a single as fans wanted Kohli to score his 82nd international century.
At the end, Kohli was on 96 when India needed 2 to win and captain Rohit Sharma with a cheeky smile gestured towards his teammate to finish the game with a six and complete his century. Kohli, however, went for a boundary with a stylish shot coming out of his crease to bring up his century in style and seal the win for India.
"It was the first time I got to watch a high-pressure game from the dressing room where Virat bhaiya scored a century. I had a lot of fun, and the way he was running between the wickets after fielding for 50 overs is a testament to his fitness," Axar added.
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"I was able to bat the way I wanted to bat and contribute in a winning cause. It obviously feels great. It was imperative to get stuck in and get this win to be able to qualify," said Virat Kohli on his performance.
"One thing that I always thought of batting at no.3 is minimise the risk and make sure I put my team in a winning position. If you have a chance to finish off the game in a run chase, then it is much better. I always prefer that kind of a situation. My role over the years has remained the same. Whatever the demands of the game, I put my head down and do that," he added.
With dominant wins over Bangladesh and Pakistan, India are all but through to the Champions Trophy semifinals.
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