Virat Kohli, who was struggling for runs in the ongoing T20 World Cup, rose to the occasion for India in the all-important final against South Africa in Barbados on Saturday (June 29).
Opting to bat first, the Men in Blue got off to a positive start as the duo of Kohli and Rohit Sharma hit five boundaries in first 8 balls. However, South Africa bounced back by taking three wickets in quick succession.
While Keshav Maharaj dismissed Rohit (9) and Rishabh Pant (0) in the second over, Kagiso Rabada got the prized scalp of Suryakumar Yadav (3) in the fifth over.
After India were reduced to 34/3, Kohli stitched 72 runs for the fourth wicket with Akshar Patel to bail the team out of trouble. While Kohli anchored the Indian innings, Akshar played the role of an aggressor.
Quinton de Kock’s direct-hit broke the partnership as Akshar was found short of his crease at the non-striker’s end. However, his knock of 47 in 31 balls with one boundary and four sixes shifted the momentum towards India.
After Patel’s dismissal, Virat Kohli put a pedal on the accelerator. He reached his half-century off 48 balls and then produced some good shots to return with 76 off 59 balls, including six boundaries and two sixes. Kohli got out to Marco Jansen in the penultimate over.
In the death overs, Shivam Dube also played a brilliant cameo of 16-ball 27, helping India post a challenging total of 176/7 on the board.
For his valiant effort with the bat in the big final, Virat Kohli was applauded by the cricket fraternity on social media.
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