Team India were clinical in the group stage of the ongoing Asia Cup 2022 in UAE. The Rohit Sharma-led side defeated Pakistan by five wickets in their tournament opener and followed it with a comprehensive 40-run victory over Hong Kong.
With their confidence sky high, the Men in Blue will once again face arch-rivals Pakistan in their first game of the Super-4 round on Sunday (September 4).
Ahead of the game, however, India have suffered a big blow as all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has been ruled out of the multi-nation tournament due to a knee injury.
See Also: Ravindra Jadeja set to miss T20 World Cup 2022, will undergo knee surgery
Moreover, right-arm pacer Avesh Khan is also feeling a bit "under the weather" on the eve of the game, as confirmed by India head coach Rahul Dravid in the pre-match press conference.
"Avesh has just been feeling a little bit unwell, just been under the weather and a bit of fever and stuff. We have got a doctor who is managing him. He is not at practice today, hopefully, it is not too serious and he is okay for tomorrow, at least the later part of the tournament," Dravid told reporters.
Veteran batter Virat Kohli’s form has been the biggest takeaway for India in the ongoing Asia Cup. While Kohli scored 34-ball 35 against Pakistan, he slammed 59 not out off 44 balls versus Hong Kong.
Before this tournament, Kohli had taken a month-long break from the game and skipped the series against West Indies and Zimbabwe.
Talking about his conversations with Kohli, Dravid said: "First thing, the talks that happen between the coach and player, I would not come and disclose that in the media. No coach will reveal the personal talks. We were also talking about the food and where you can get good in Dubai, he knows a lot about good restaurants."
"He played very well in the last match, we all were happy. He is coming back after a gap of one month. It is nice to see that he has come back fresh and he is really looking forward to playing the game, not that he was not looking to play the game before," he further stated.
"Virat is one of those guys who is always on. It is nice, I am glad that he has had that break and he has come back fresh and relaxed. He has gotten a chance to play in the middle and play a couple of games where he has got to spend some time in the middle and hopefully from here on, he can kick on and have a really good tournament," he added.
For Dravid, Virat Kohli’s vital contributions to India’s victory are much more important than his personal milestones.
"For us, it is not really about looking at how many runs he makes. Especially with Virat, people get a little bit obsessed with his statistics and numbers. For us, it is not really about that, it is about the contributions he can make in different phases of the game and what the contribution is. It does not have to be the 50s or 100s."
"Even small contributions mean a lot in T20 cricket. Virat is someone who is pretty keen on putting on big performances. Really glad that he is playing so well, hopefully, he can keep doing that in the rest of the tournament," he remarked.
(With NDTV inputs)
