Team India pulled off a victory from the jaws of defeat to open their T20 World Cup 2022 campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan at MCG last Sunday (October 23).
Chasing 160 to win, the Men in Blue were in dire straits at 31/4 after 6.1 overs. Amid the pressure situation, Kohli rose to the occasion as he smashed 82* off 53 balls and shared a 113-run stand with Hardik Pandya (40 off 37 balls) to put India on the brink of victory, which was eventually sealed by R Ashwin on the last delivery of the match.
Apart from Kohli and Pandya, Ashwin is also receiving praise from the fans and experts alike for holding his nerves when India needed 2 runs off 1 ball.
Before Ashwin hit the winning shot over mid-off, he showed an incredible presence of mind by leaving a Mohammad Nawaz delivery that turned out to be a wide one, helping India tie the match.
Three days after the game, Ashwin shared his experience of that high-pressure situation on his YouTube channel.
“The moment I saw the ball going down the leg side, I decided not to have any business playing it and decided to leave it alone and got one run for the wide. As soon as I got that run, I was so relaxed,” he was quoted as saying.
Ashwin had to come to the crease as wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik got out stumped on the fifth delivery, leaving the former with a tricky task.
The off-spinner confessed that he was cursing Karthik while walking out to bat in that crunch situation.
“As I walked in to bat, I cursed Dinesh Karthik for a second and then later thought, ‘No no, we still have time, let us do what we were here for’. It seemed like I was walking for ages to get to the pitch,” he said.
Talking about the winning shot, Ashwin said: “As soon as I got that run, I was so happy. Now, no one will throw any stones at my home! If I can lift the ball and place it somewhere, it will be good. I thought God has made this guy smash Haris Rauf over his head for a 6 on the backfoot and over the square leg for another with a flick. Won’t God allow my chip over the infield in some vacant area? And thank god, it did. What a moment.”
India will take on Netherlands in their second Super 12 match at SCG Group on October 27.
