"The Man, The Myth, The Legend" - Twitterati heaps praise on Virat Kohli for scoring a pivotal fifty against Pakistan
Team India skipper Virat Kohli saved the day for his side against Pakistan after the team's top order failed. Due to his responsible knock, India managed to get a respectable score of 151/7 in the end.
Pakistan's ace swing bowler Shaheen Afridi(3/31) wreaked havoc and played a starring role in the first innings to contain India to an average total.
Earlier, Pakistan got off to a dream start as Shaheen Afridi dismissed Rohit Sharma for a golden duck with a beautiful delivery. The young left-arm seamer then cleaned up KL Rahul with another impressive ball to leave India reeling at 6/2 after 2.1 overs.
Suryakumar Yadav played a couple of attacking shots and looked promising, but he also perished quickly. Rishabh Pant(39) then played a crucial knock in the middle order and put on a useful stand with skipper Virat Kohli(57) in the middle overs.
Fans took notice of the action in the first innings and took to Twitter to heap praise on Virat Kohli for playing a crucial knock when the team needed him. They also appreciated Rishabh Pant's enterprising innings, as it gave some impetus to India in the middle overs.
Here are some of the best reactions:
Virat Kohli tonight: #INDvPAK #T20WorldCup https://t.co/3CJu6Yp0Yz
No caption needed 😍😍😍
#INDvPAK #TeamIndia #Dhoni #Kohli https://t.co/7oPokUYWYw
The Man , The Myth , The Legend...!!!
Virat Kohli - Man of big stages 👑❤️
29th T20i 50 , captain leading from the front as always 🙏 yet again Kohli vs Pakistan https://t.co/XLXJRuqWa8
Pakistan : We'll bowl out this Indian batting line up easily.
Virat Kohli :
#INDvPAK https://t.co/5sfpt8qP76
I recommend Virat Kohli in WT20s. You can bet on it. https://t.co/DqetwgRbJ6
Intelligent innings from Virat Kohli, India could have crumbled, his innings held the team together.
Virat Kohli is like Super Saiyan..... When near death gets stronger 💪
#INDvPAK #TeamIndia
If Kohli got out today, India would be bundled out under 120 or maybe less.
Virat Kohli's innings is so much more important than it looks. Si gle handedly saved India's hopes
#INDvPAK
Very good score on this wicket. Now it’s time for bowlers to backup with good bowling. Taking pace of the ball is very crucial on this wicket.. #INDvPAK #TeamIndia
#ICCT20WorldCup2021
Those 4 runs off the overthrow could be very decisive. This is going to be a very close contest imo. Will go right down to the wire. India need to get to 155 somehow.
#INDvPAK
Performance of Virat Kohli in the T20 World Cup against Pakistan:
78*(61) in 2012.
36*(32) in 2014.
55*(37) in 2016.
57(49) in 2021.
When it gets tough, tough gets going. A champion - King Kohli. https://t.co/z77omzDPvw
There was a clear definition in roles since the end of the Powerplay, with Rishabh Pant playing an attacking shot 64% of the time compared to Virat Kohli, who has attacked just 10% of deliveries and looked to give Pant the strike.
#T20WorldCup #INDvPAK
#INDvPAK
Whenever pant Hits a boundary
Camera man to Urvashi Rautela https://t.co/SAd1sz8DOG
Shaheen deserved that wicket of Kohli the most. A good innings from the Indian skipper. #PakVsInd
After nine years, four attempts and 226 runs, #Pakistan has finally managed to dismiss #ViratKohli in a #T20WorldCup match.
#INDvPAK
What a legend! Whenever team is under pressure he always delivered. Take a bow champ 👏👏
#KingKohli #INDvPAK #T20WorldCup21 @imVkohli #TeamIndia
Shaheen Shah Afridi has been rewarded for ability to control the new ball today, pushing the ball across the right-handers before picking up the wickets of Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul with the only two balls hitting the stumps in his opening 2 overs.
#T20WorldCup #INDvPAK https://t.co/mceF5ILQnc
I don't think I will be bowling in this game: Hardik Pandya
Hardik Pandya recently confirmed that he would not be bowling in the match against Pakistan. Pandya revealed that he would commence bowling only when the doctors cleared him and remained hopeful of starting to bowl at some stage in the current World Cup.
Speaking to the broadcast before the match began, Hardik Pandya said:
"My back is quite good - I don't think I will be bowling in this game. I am managing it well but I would like to bowl at some point of time during the tournament. Hopefully sometime around the knockouts. I will take the call as well but I respect the calls made by the medical professionals - they will tell me the right time I can resume bowling."
He added:
"It's not easy but I personally make sure that I don't get too hyped by the situation. My friends, relatives and family don't create the hype that is out there. I try to stay away from social media for such games since you tend to get excited by the hype around. At the end of the day, we need to tick all the right boxes and follow the right processes to win the game."
India got to a decent total after a fighting display from Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant. If dew doesn't play a major role, it will be an interesting chase to watch for the fans.