After suffering a crushing 10-wicket loss against Pakistan, India skipper Virat Kohli admitted that they were outplayed at the hands of arch-rivals in their T20 World Cup 2021 opener in Dubai on Sunday (October 24).

In the highly-anticipated encounter, Pakistan restricted India to 151/7 in 20 overs on the back of Shaheen Afridi’s sensational spell of 3 for 31 in four overs. India’s famed batting line-up couldn’t rise to the occasion and Kohli was the top scorer with 49-ball 57.

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In reply, Pakistan rode on unbeaten half-centuries from Mohammad Rizwan (79* off 55 balls) and captain Babar Azam (68 not out off 52 balls) to overhaul the target with 13 balls to spare.

"We didn't execute properly. Credit where it's due and Pakistan outplayed us today. They started brilliantly with the ball, and 3 wickets for 20 runs was not a good start. We needed wickets early but with the bat, they gave us absolutely no chances," Kohli said in the post-match presentation ceremony.

"It played slow in the first half and hitting through the line was not that easy as it was in the second half, after 10 overs. We needed those 15-20 extra runs and for that, we needed a good start but Pakistan's bowling didn't allow us to get those extra runs," he added.

With this victory, Pakistan also ended their World Cup jinx versus India. Before this game, they had lost 12 out of 12 games across the ODI and T20 World Cups against the neighbours.

"We could make the argument of getting in another slower bowler, but it's important to stay composed and understand our strengths, because with the dew the slower bowlers couldn't be effective either. This is just the first game of the tournament, not the last," said Kohli.

India will take on New Zealand in their next game at Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday (October 31).

(With ANI inputs)