Virat Kohli grateful to MS Dhoni for allowing him to score winning runs in semifinal

Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni

Virat Kohli would have received many accolades and gifts for his match-winning 73* against South Africa in the ICC World T20 semifinal but it wouldn’t be wrong to say that the best gift he received came from his skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Dhoni walked into the middle with the scores level and India requiring one run to progress to the final. Everyone expected the skipper to score the winning runs of the last  ball of the 19th over with a big hit to the boundary.

Dhoni however, chose to defend a Beuran Hendricks short ball to the on-side and give Virat Kohli the opportunity to score the winning runs.

“Yes, he gave me the chance (to score the winning runs),” the Delhi batsman told reporters after finishing unbeaten on 72 as India reached their victory target of 173. “I told him, ‘You finish it off’.

“But he said, ‘What else can I give you? You’ve batted well in this match. This is my gift’.

“I said, ‘That’s very kind of you’. I accepted it, why not? Scoring the winning runs always feels different. I’m grateful to him that he let me finish it off.”

Kohli showed immense temperament and a cool head to lead India home in the semifinals.

The Indian vice-captain who has developed into the mainstay of India’s batting in the limited overs formats, rated the knock against South Africa as his best T20 knock ever.

“I’ve hit the ball better on other occasions, my timing has also been better on a few occasions. But considering the situation and the occasion it’s definitely my top Twenty20 innings,” Kohli said.