Virat Kohli best thing about India versus Pakistan World T20 match
Unseasonal rains in Kolkata on Saturday evening threatened to spoil the grand show at the Eden Gardens. The hype for the India versus Pakistan match had reached a crescendo, more so after the hosts had begun their ICC World T20 campaign on a wrong note against New Zealand.
For two nations who hardly play sport as a bilateral series, India versus Pakistan is all about intense pressure and keeping nerves in control as what matters is sheer performance inside the arena and not rhetoric.
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| Virat Kohli (L) and MS Dhoni after India defeated Pakistan in ICC World T20 by six wickets. |
The ground staff at the Eden Gardens had done a great job and the excellent drainage facility ensured only four overs were lost to the rain delay. Yet, when Pakistan was put in to bat, one look at the wicket and you knew this was not the best surface for a T20 contest.
The grass had been shaved off and the unpredictable bounce coupled with sharp turn was going to make it a low-scoring match. For those who had watched India make a hash of it against the Kiwis in Nagpur, there was a worry as to how the batsmen would chase a fairly low score against Pakistan.
The Indian bowlers did a decent job on a pitch which offered them assistance. The ground fielding was good and the Indians did well in a cauldron-like atmosphere not to let the advantage slip. To be sure, when you have festivities before a match, it's not the best preparation as far as the players are concerned.
Presenting mementos and so on should not happen before a match which has been hit by rain. But then, when you have the national anthem being rendered by none other than Amitabh Bachchan in his trademark voice, you had to see the focus and intensity on the faces of the Team India players.
As they sang Jana Gana Mana, you knew the adrenaline had started flowing gently. It's perhaps the best way to get in the zone as fans had packed the stadium like expected. This was a night when every cricket fan inside the arena was tense at the start.
Pakistan had begun the tournament with a win and the momentum was with them. Or so we thought. And for India, the loss in the first outing had put some pressure on them, though as the match wore on, it was clear MS Dhoni and his bunch of players were sure they would not make a hash of it on Saturday.
This was not an easy wicket to bat on. If openers Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan fell cheaply, Mohammad Sami, in an explosive burst, was on a hat-trick after he had rocked Suresh Raina's stumps.
Yuvraj Singh ensured he survived the storm and did well to play second fiddle to the man we all associate with supremacy on the cricket field - Virat Kohli. These days, Team India's fortunes are somehow linked with how Kohli bats. He had done the same against Pakistan in the Asia Cup in Bangladesh a few weeks ago when he played shots straight from the manual and used the "V" to score runs. On Saturday, Kohli played with even greater intensity as he handled pace and spin with aplomb.
There was a touch of class in almost every shot Kohli executed.
If he was sure of his footwork and timing in front of the wicket, he played some delectable shots square of the wicket to frustrate Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi.
For a side like Pakistan to lose so regularly to India is not enigmatic but a sign how they fail to handle the pressure, be it in ODIs or the T20 format.
Back to Kohli, his batting makes cricket look so easy. However treacherous the nature of the wicket and whatever be the variety being offered by the bowlers, he bats as if nothing matters to him.
And once skipper Dhoni joined him in the middle, fans inside the arena and those watching the match on television knew India would pull it off without further damage.
At a time when doubts still persist in the minds of fans as to what is Dhoni's utility in the team in shorter formats, one had to see him bat on Saturday. His straight six and running between the wickets in the company of the effervescent Kohli was a thrill to watch as India scripted their fifth win against the Pakistanis in the ICC World T20.
The tournament has thrown up some interesting results till now, with West Indies and England catching the eye. And with India back in the winning mode, this is the best news for the event.
(Courtesy of Mail Today.)