World Cup 2019: "At no stage did he look panicked or confused"- Sachin Tendulkar hails Virat Kohli's captaincy against Afghanistan
What's the story?
Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar has praised Indian captain Virat Kohli for his captaincy in the encounter against Afghanistan, stating that the Indian skipper never looked confused or panicked during the game.
In case you didn't know..
India maintained their unbeaten record in the World Cup 2019 as they managed to defeat Afghanistan in a low scoring encounter. India won by just 11 runs in a thrilling encounter that saw the underdogs put up a valiant fight against the heavyweights.
In India's clash against Afghanistan, Kohli won the toss and chose to bat first on a slow pitch. The Men in Blue were dealt an early shock as Rohit Sharma was dismissed in the fifth over.
KL Rahul and Kohli tried their best to help their team put on a respectable total but the middle order found it extremely difficult to score runs against the Afghanistan bowlers. India were restricted to 224 at the end of 50 overs.
Afghanistan looked went about their chase steadily but some superb bowling from pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami helped India mount a comeback. Shami became the second Indian to get a hat-trick in the World Cup after Chetan Sharma in the final over to end the Afghanistan innings at just 213.
The heart of the matter
Sachin Tendulkar was amazed by captain Kohli's calmness and decisiveness during the match.
Speaking in an interview with India Today, Tendulkar said:
"I thought Virat's captaincy was good, the best part was at no stage he looked panicked or confused. When there were dot balls being bowled he also knew Afghanistan was sinking slowly but surely,"
"Virat's contribution today was perfect. Nobody was talking these numbers 25 years ago. He is always confident, today he was out there early. The moment you see his body language and footwork you know his intent is different and today I saw that."
"It was a difficult track to bat but when Virat was batting it didn't seem that way. When it comes to Virat the way he started, today was possibly his best start. He looked as comfortable as ever. He started timing the ball from the word go."
What's next?
India will face West Indies in their next fixture before taking on hosts England next Sunday.
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