"We didn't have any answers" - When Misbah-ul-Haq bowed to Virat Kohli's 183 vs Pakistan in 2012
Ace Indian batter Virat Kohli recorded his highest ODI score of 183 during a famous win over Pakistan in the 2012 Asia Cup. He stepped up when the team needed his services against a challenging bowling outfit and a steep target in Dhaka.
Team India put on a disappointing bowling display to concede 329-6, with Mohammed Hafeez and Nasir Jamshed both scoring tons. At that time, India had never chased down such a total, with the iconic NatWest final triumph against England being their previous best where they hunted down the 326-run target at Lord's.
To make matters worse for the Men in Blue, they got off to the worst possible start. Gautam Gambhir was dismissed off the second ball by Hafeez. Kohli had to walk out to bat straightaway, and forged a solid partnership with Sachin Tendulkar.
In what turned out to be the legendary batter's final ODI, he scored a fifty but was soon undone by Saeed Ajmal. At a crucial juncture in the run chase, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli joined forces to dominate the middle overs. The duo went about their business, kept the scoreboard ticking, and never let the required rate go out of reach.
Although Kohli could not wrap up the chase, he inflicted a lot of damage by scoring more than half of the target, rendering Pakistan skipper Misbah-ul-Haq helpless.
"First of all, credit to them. Whatever the wicket or conditions, chasing 329 is difficult. The manner in which they batted, they outclassed us. I think 329 is not a bad total. When you try to score 350-370, even making 329 is difficult. With our bowling, 325-330 was our target. I think it was a good total but the way they played, we didn't have any answers," Misbah said during the post-match presentation.
Newly appointed Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir recently proclaimed Kohli's famous 183 as the greatest ODI knock by an Indian player.
"I still can't believe what happened out there honestly" - Virat Kohli after his historic effort
Kohli was adjudged player of the match for his incredible knock as his ascendancy in the Indian team across formats continued.
"I still can't believe what happened out there honestly. I'm really satisfied. We were waiting for these 3-4 overs of 15-20 runs. I'm a fan of Rohit Sharma, love watching him bat. I would rate this knock and Hobart equally. To be able to chase 330 against this bowling is satisfying," Kohli said after his knock.
Despite Kohli's heroics, India failed to qualify for the finals of the tournament. Their group-stage defeat to Bangladesh proved to be costly in the end.